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TT C C W hV A V K 1 1 \ 



iDn A ffian-of-UJar. 



Series of Naval Sketches, 



Francis 0. Davenport. 



LIEUT. COMMANDER U. S. NAVY. 



How gloriously her gallant course she goes! 
Her white wings flying — never from her foes 
She walks the water like a thing of life. 
And seems to dare the elements to strife. 
Who would not brave the battle-fire — the wreck — 
To move the monarch of her peopled deck ? 

liYRON : Corsair 






DETROIT : 
E. B. SMITH & C.C 

18 73. 






vi 






■? 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1878, by 

Francis O. Davenport, 
in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



Stereotyped and Printed 

by the 
Detroit Free Press Co. 



PREFACE. 



In submitting this book, or collection of letters, to the 
public, I desire to preface it with, some appropriate remarks. 

I was, truly and honestly, asked to write some letters 
descriptive of life on a man-of-war, narratives of real facts 
and incidents in my naval career. 

With some diffidence — this is also true — I sent material for 
three or four letters to the office of the Detroit Free Press, 
with directions to curtail, amend or suppress, as the superior 
editorial mind should think proper. To my surprise and 
pleasure, the letters appeared in full, without correction or 
abbreviation. 

Upon the appearance of these letters from time to time, in 
the Sunday paper, I was overwhelmed with compliments 
from my friends, expressing the hope that the letters would 
be continued. Five cents for a paper is very little, I know, 
and the sacrifice is still less when you borrow the paper. I 
shall, therefore, watch with considerable anxiety, to see if the 
interested readers of my single articles will stand the test of 
paying one dollar and a half for the entire series combined. 

If my readers — my readers sounds good — take as much 



pleasure in reading these letters as I Lave taken in reviving 
these old reminiscences, I shall feel amply repaid (this, of 
course, does not include the price of the book, one dollar 
and a half, bound in calf). 

As this volume is instructive, written "to meet a long felt 
want," I would say that none should be without a copy of it. 
To that end, I respectfully suggest to my readers — that is, the 
purchasers of my book — not to lend it, but to advise would-be 
borrowers that it would be pure madness for any one to take 
any chance of being without this valuable work. 



A SCRAP FROM THE U. S. NAVAL ACADEMY. 



Now list, ye winds, while I repeat 
A parting signal to the fleet, 

Whose station is at home ; 
Then waft a sea-boy's simple prayer, 
And be it oft remembered there 

While other climes I roam. 

Farewell to Father, reverend hulk, 
Who, spite of metal, spite of bulk, 

Must soon his cable slip , 
But, e'er he's broken ground, I'll try 
The flag of gratitude to fly, 

In duty to the ship. 

Farewell to Mother, first-class she, 
Who launched me on life's troubled sea„ 

And rigged me fore and aft ; 
May Heaven, to her, her timbers spare, 
And keep her hull in good repair, 

To tow the smaller craft 



A SCRAP FROM THE U. 8. NAVAL ACADEMY-. 

Farewell to Sister, lovely yacht, 
But whether she'll be spliced or not, 

I cannot now foresee ; 
But may some craft a tender prove, 
Well found in stores of youth and love. 

To take her under lee. 

Farewell to Jack, the jolly boat, 
And all the little craft afloat 

In home's delightful bay; 
When they arrive at sailing age, 
Some trusty pilot may engage, 

To get them under weigh. 

Farewell to all on life's wide main, 
We ne'er perchance may meet again, 

Thro' stress of stormy weather; 
Till, summoned by the Board above, 
We'll anehor in the Port of Love, 

And all be moored together. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



" The seaman, safe on shore, with joy cloth tell 
What cruel dangers him at sea befell." 



LETTER I. 

DETAILS OF FITTING OUT A SHIP FOR A CRUISE THE 

OFFICERS AND CREW THE ARMAMENT THE EVO- 
LUTIONS A CALL TO THE MAINMAST THE WATCH- 
ES THE BOATS' CREWS IN COMMISSION THE LOG. 

My Dear Fellow — You have often asked me to give 
you some idea of the general routine on board an 
American man-of-war, and I know of no better way 
than to jot down my actual experience in the fitting 
out of a ship from a navy yard. 

On the 9th of June I was suddenly detached from 
the United States Naval Academy by the following 
order : 

You are hereby detached from the Naval Academy, and 
you will proceed to Boston, Massachusetts, without delay, 
and report to Rear Admiral Stringham for duty on board the 

U. S. S. , second rate. 

I am very respectfully your obedient servant, 

GIDEON WELLES, 

Secretary of the Navy. 
To Lieut. , United States Navy. 

I arrived at the navy yard and presented myself at 
the commandant's office at 10 a. m. to report, and 
being provided by the friendly clerk in the office with 



10 ON A MAX-OF-WAR. 

the objectionable uniform cap, invented by one of 
the old Admirals, and only worn when one was afraid 
not to wear it, I entered the Admiral's sanctum to 
introduce myself and get his indorsement on my 
orders that I had so reported. 

You see, my dear boy, that the paymaster pays 
according to your " orders," and until I reported I 
was on "leave" pay, whereas as soon as I reported I 
became entitled to " other duty " pay, which is twenty 
per cent higher. As soon as the ship is put in com- 
mission the officers are entitled to " sea pay," which 
is still higher. 

After reporting I went at once to the ship, which 
was moored at the wharf and filled with carpenters 
and riggers busily engaged fitting the ship for Bea. 
The ship is in the hands of the navy yard officers 
until she is put in commission and is turned over to 
the commanding officer of the ship in the presence of 
his officers and crew, at that time complete and ready 
for sea. Until this ceremony takes place the officers 
of the ship have no authority on board, the employee 
of the yard getting their orders from the officers 
attached to the navy yard only, and not from the 
officers of the ship. 

The various officers, on reporting for duty to the 
commander, are, however, directed to report on board 
daily, and watch that their various departments are 



ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 1 1 

being properly supplied by the authorities of the 
yard. 

The first lieutenant or executive officer, has a gen- 
eral superintendence, and conveys the wishes of the 
commander of the vessel to the junior officers. The 
second lieutenant, who is ordnance officer and navi- 
gator, assisted by the gunner, and by his signal quar- 
termaster, looks after the storage of the shell rooms, 
shot lockers and the various chronometers, compasses, 
sextants, lead lines, etc., belonging to the navigator. 

A certain allowance of seamen, ordinary seamen, 
landsmen and boys is detailed from the receiving ship 
as a crew for the vessel fitting out, and every officer, 
who is interested, visits the receiving ship to find out if 
there is some particular one that he wants, and works 
wires as best he can to get his choice included in the 
list finally detailed to the ship. 

The captain is on the lookout for a good cook and 
steward; so also is the caterer of the ward room 
mess, the steerage mess, and the warrant officers' 
mess; and as the pay is higher in the order men- 
tioned, the quality is generally the same. 

When the ship is quite ready the crew is sent on 
board, and all hands being assembled on the quarter 
deck the flag is hoisted at the peak and the pennant 
to the main truck, and the ship formally turned over 



L2 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

to its commander by the commandant of the yard, 
and the ship is in "commission." 

The executive officer at once organizes the crew, 
dividing the men into two watches — starboard and 
port watch, so many men as f orecastlemen, foretop- 
men, maintopmen, mizzentopmen and afterguards. 

The f orecastlemen do duty from the foremast for- 
ward; the foretopmen, aloft and on port side from 
foremast to mainmast; the maintopmen, aloft and on 
starboard side from foremast to mainmast; mizzen- 
topmen, aloft and on port side from mainmast aft; 
and afterguards on starboard side aft. 

A foretopman would look with pitying contempt 
on a young officer who directed him to "squilgee 
down " in the starboard gangway, and would call one 
of the maintopmen to look out for his own part of 
the ship. One of our admirals was ordered out to 
take command of the Mediterranean squadron, and, 
upon coming on board the flagship, was met at the 
gangway by an old classmate (the one he was to 
relieve) with the salutation, "Hallo, old fellow, how 
are you ?" and observing that the Admiral had care- 
fully combed his back hair forward up and over to 
cover the bald top of his head, added, "Well, that's 
the first time I ever saw afterguard doing foretop 
duty." 

The executive officer selects from the crew the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 13 

petty officers as allowed by the allowance book. I 
had fifty to choose. One master at arms, who is 
chief of police, and in charge of berth deck; two 
ship's corporals, aids to master at arms; four cox- 
swains; two captains of the forecastle; two captains 
of the foretop; two captains of the maintop, mizzen 
and afterguard; two boatswain's mates, one gunner's 
mate, four quarter gunners, etc. When the list is 
made out the captain approves and directs the pay- 
master to take them up on his books according to the 
pay of their respective offices. A seaman gets $18 
a month and his ration, while the petty officers get 
$20, $24 and even $30, and in steamers the machinists 
get, I think, $76.50 a month. 

The crew is then stationed for every evolution, and 
each man can find his station by his hammock num- 
ber, displayed in some suitable place framed for their 
inspection. As each man has to be stationed for 
"getting under weigh," "bringing ship to an an- 
chor," " tacking ship," " wearing ship," " loosing and 
furling," " reefing topsails," " in and out boats," " up 
and down topgallant and royal yards," etc., it is no 
small piece of work to watch and station a crew of 
500 men. Then the crew has to be " quartered," or 
stationed at the guns. Our ship had twenty-two 
guns on the gun deck — ten nine-inch forming the 
first division, in charge of the third lieutenant, and 



14 ON A 1CAN-OF-WAB. 

twelve long thirty-two's, forming the second division, 
in charge of the fourth lieutenant; eight thirty-two's 
on the quarter deck, four thirty-two's forward, with a 
hundred-pounder rifled Parrot on the forecastle and 
another aft. 

The navigator had charge of the powder division, 
passing the different cylinders or cartridges for the 
guns of the various calibers. 

The captain is stationed where he chooses, gener- 
ally on the bridge, and the executive by his side, or 
where he can see the best and make himself heard. 

I then assigned the different crews to the eight 
boats. This is a very nice operation, as you want 
the best men, who generally pull the best oar, and if 
you take too many from one part of the ship you are 
soon notified that Brown, the " captain of the fore- 
castle," is at the mast and wishes to speak to the first 
lieutenant. (The mainmast is the tribunal of justice 
on board a man-of-war, and a man at the mast must 
be attended to.) 

" If you please, sir, we didn't have but two men, 
starboard watch, this morning to wash decks." 

"Two! Why not?" 

"Why, there's four gigsmen, and they was to 
sleep in till six bells " (the captain was out till one 
o'clock), "and there was one in the dingey (market 
boat), and Smith he's cook of the mess Flattery is 



uX A MAN-OF-WAB. 15 

on the list (sick list), and Tom Scott didn't come off 
last night in the ten o'clock boat. I wish, sir, you'd 
give us a man for sweeper, sir. That Jones, sir, ain't 
fit for captain of the head, sir." 

If I promised him a man from the main top you 
can depend upon it I heard from the "captain of 
the maintop " right away. 

The captains of the tops and coxswains of boats 
are petty tyrants and exact the most implicit obedi- 
ence from their inferiors. 

The flag is hoisted at 8 a. m. in summer and at 9 
a. m. in winter at the peak of the spanker, and should 
always be taut or close up to the peak. The pen- 
nant should never be hauled down, as it is the desig- 
nating mark of a ship in commission, and when the 
long day pennant is changed at sunset for the short 
night pennant the latter is sent up in a ball and the 
stop broken as the other comes down. I have heard 
an irascible old captain " holler " at a quartermaster 
for neglecting this ceremony, saying, " D — n your 
eyes, do you want to put the ship out of commission, 
sir ?" The Union Jack, white stars on a blue field, is 
hoisted on a flag-staff stepped on the bowsprit cap, 
and is displayed at the same time with the " colors," 
and like them hauled down at sunset. During a 
funeral ceremony the colors are half-masted or low- 
ered about one-third the way down, and I heard the 



16 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

captain one day, coming on board and observing the 
halliards slacked down about two inches go for the 
officer of the deck with the sarcastic question, 

" Anybody dead, sir ?" 

Whereupon the officer of the deck turned hastily 
to the quartermaster with: 

" Get a pull of those peak halliards there." 

After a ship is put in commission the watches are 
at once organized, the starboard watch being on four 
hours and then the port watch, the watch from 4 to 8 
p. m. being subdivided into the dog watches from 
4 to 6 and 6 to 8 in order to produce rotation, other- 
wise one watch would have the " eight hours out," 
8 p. m. to 12 and 4 to 8 a. m., and the other the " mid 
watch," 12 to 4 a. m., every night. In harbor an 
" anchor watch " only is kept, being " one or two men 
from each part of the ship," as may be directed by 
the captain. 

There are generally four watch officers, lieuten- 
ants, masters, ensigns and even midshipmen, accord- 
ing to the size of the ship, the number of officers 
and the liberality of the commander in giving the 
youngsters a chance to work ship and stand a watch. 

In large ships the midshipmen go in charge of 
boats, carry messages to other ships, stand a watch 
on the forecastle at sea, attend to heaving the log, 
taking the temperature and making the entries on 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. ±J 

the log slate of barometer, direction of wind, state of 
weather, the proportion of sky clear, etc. 

The officer of the deck is an important personage. 
He gives every order that is given on deck, directed, 
of course, by the captain or first lieutenant. He is 
responsible for the cleanliness of the ship, that the 
routine is carried on and the general duty during his 
four hours' watch. He makes and takes in sail, sends 
away boats and directs the disposition of them on 
their return, and everybody goes to the officer of the 
deck for everything. At the end of his watch he 
writes up his remarks opposite the tabular statement 
written up by the midshipman somewhat as follows: 

At Sea, August 24th, 1870. 

" Commenced clear and pleasant with light south- 
erly breezes, sky cirro cumulus, ship under plain sail. 
At 2.30 a. m. wind veered to northward and eastward, 
overcast and cloudy, with occasional squalls; took in 
royals, hauled down flying jib. At three single reefed 
topsails and changed course to northwest. F. L. W." 

The log slate is copied into the log book and signed 
by the officer every day. The log book also shows 
how many sticks of wood were served out to the 
cooks and also how many gallons of water, with 
the balance on hand. The engineer's log shows how 
many pounds of coal have been burned and how much 



18 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

is left on hand. We had tanks carrying 40,000 gal- I 
Ions of water, and I drank some of the water when 
we returned to Boston one year after it had been put 
in, and it was sweet and pure. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 19 



LETTER II. 

HOW A VESSEL GETS UNDER AVEIGH ALL HANDS LOOSE 

SAIL ALOFT SAIL LOOSERS BRINGING THE SHIP 

TO ANCHOR. 

In my last letter I explained substantially the fit- 
ting out of a man-of-war from the navy yard, so 
now, if you are interested, I will endeaver to give 
you some idea of the routine of a ship in commission. 

The next morning after the ceremony of putting 
the ship in commission, the captain gave me orders 
to get the ship under weigh, under sail at 2 p. m. and 
go down the harbor to an anchorage. Of course I 
was nervous. I was only twenty-two years old, and 
felt that there were some things about a ship that 
I did not. know; besides, when I stood upon the 
bridge, I felt so small and the ship looked so infernal 
long, that I determined at once that the only way to 
run the ship at all was to claim the privilege of doing 
all the talking myself. Even on shore, you know, 
there is a general tendency for every one to suggest 
how to do it; "they all do it." 

In one of Marry at's stories, he describes the getting 
under weigh of a small schooner, officered by some 
immense men, where Lieut. B., leveling a long trum- 
pet at the officer of the forecastle, hailed him in pon- 



20 ON A MA\-oF-\YAli. 

derous tones: " Are you ready, sir ? " and was answered 
in a deafening shout of "Aye, aye, sir," by that 
doughty officer, who at the same time was so close to 
him that he nearly blew him off his feet. But here I 
had a clear space of about 175 feet to "holler" in, 
and if the boats'n's mates whistled and people shouted 
as I had heard them do on some other ships, I knew 
that I would stand no chance of making myself heard 
at all. 

I had w r atched, quartered, and stationed the ship's 
crew for everything, but still w T ondered if I had not 
forgotten something. Perhaps Avhen I gave the 
order to "frow de ank," de ank might have no 
rope to it. The experience of a classmate of mine 
did not reassure me, for under precisely similar cir- 
cumstances w r hen he gave the order, " Aloft, sail-loos- 
ers," he said every mother's son of 'em went aloft, 
and he found he had forgotten to station any men at 
the clew-jiggers and buntlines on deck, so he had to 
call them down and start anew. 

Well! all the navy yard people, including some 

rather pretty girls, came down to see the S gel 

under weigh; so I marched into the cabin, and swal- 
lowing a lump in my throat I said boldly: 

" I will get under weigh, sir, if you please." 

The captain smiled a little and said, " Certainly, 
Mr. , whenever! you are ready." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 21 

So, having no other excuse for delay, I said to the 
officer of the deck: 

"Well, sir, I will relieve you; we will get under 
weigh." 

As we were fast to the wharf, there was no anchor 
to raise, so I sent a messenger boy to the boatswain, 
" All hands loose sail," and soon I heard his pipe fol- 
lowed by a second from his mate and third from an- 
other mate, and then altogether rising higher and 
higher and falling, this twice repeated and then the 
hoarse cry, "Loose sail," "loose sail," "loose sail." 
I could hear the master at arms on the berth deck: 
" Look alive there now, tumble up there, on deck there 
everybody; loose sail " — until I thought I had lost all 
the sail I wanted to. The men all quickly went, each 
to the place assigned him, the officers all took their 
stations, one on the forecastle, one in each gangway 
and one aft, all curiously looking up to see how the 
executive would work ship. I felt a little relieved to 
see that they all seemed to be about where I had seen 
them in other ships, when I was a junior, and I hoped 
that I had made no mistakes; and with the feeling 
that I should not be surprised if the mainmast with 
all its heavy rigging should suddenly tumble over- 
board, I put up my trumpet and gave my first order 
on that eventful cruise: 

" Aloft, sail-loosers. Man the boom tricing lines." 



22 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

And then, with a caution to the men to keep in the 
slings of the yard until ordered out: 

"Trice up — lay out and loose. Man the topsail 
sheets and halliards — let fall; sheet home, down booms, 
lay down from aloft. Hoist away the topsails." 

The shrill whistle of the boatswains' mates and the 
prompt obedience to my orders soon restored my con- 
fidence, and as we let go our lines and hoisted jib, tin- 
old frigate payed off from the wharf and stood beau- 
tifully down the harbor, the band playing and friends 
waving and cheering on the wharf. I was so de- 
lighted that at a nod from the captain I gave the 
order : 

"Stand by to man the port rigging and give three 
cheers. Lay up — cheer — lay down." 

So you see that even when we cheer on board ship 
we have to do it by rule. 

We sailed down the harbor with a fair wind, under 
topsails, jib and spanker until near where we intended 
to anchor. Then the word was passed with the same 
ceremony, and whistling " Bring ship to anchor," 
the men went to their stations. The two men who 
were to let go the 7,000 pound anchor looked to see if 
the trip stoppers were all ready; the compressers 
were hove back to allow the chain to run freely from 
the chain lockers; the topsail clews were stoppered 
and the sheets unhooked, and the order given: "Man 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 23 

the topsail, clew jiggers andbuntlines; jib downhaul; 
hands by the sheets and halliards; haul taut; shorten 
sail." 

Up went the clew jiggers, down came the heavy 
yards on to the caps, quick hands squaring the yards 
as they came down, down went the helm, and as soon 
as she lost headway came the order: 

"Stand clear of the starboard chain — let go the 
starboard anchor." 

And the ship was riding quietly head to wind, and 
I was able to " pipe down " and turn the deck over to 
the regular officer of the watch, to clear up the gear 
and go to supper. 



1± ON A MAX-OF-WAR. 

LETTER III. 

a ALL HANDS CALLED" A DAY ON SIIIPHOARD — 

TWELVE O'CLOCK, " MAKE IT SO " " A MAN AT THE 

MAST" THE STORY OF WILLIAM TRUSTY HOW UK 

GOT RELIGION OFF OF JIMMY DAGGS. 

At daylight the next morning " all hands were 
called," hammocks piped up, lashed neatly and stowed 
in the hammock nettings which run round the rail of 
the ship, protected from the weather by painted can- 
vass hammock cloths, hauled over when the ham- 
mocks are all in, and stopped down securely. The 
market boat was sent ashore with the various stew- 
ards of the different messes, and the order passed to 
"wash decks." At 7.15 a. m. the decks were thor- 
oughly cleaned and the ship scrubbed inside and out. 
The mess cloths were then spread, and at seven bells 
(7.30 a. m.) "piped to breakfast." I then relieved the 
officer of the deck to dress, so that when the officer 
of the forenoon watch came on at 8.30, having fin- 
ished breakfast, the other would be able to >it down 
to his own, and not delay the ward room boys, mak- 
ing them late to " quarters." 

At this time the executive officer receives the re- 
ports of the gunner, carpenter, boatswain and sail- 
maker, all warrant officers drawing pay at from 



ON A MAX-OF-WAR 25 

$1,200 to $1,800 per annum. The gunner reports 
" the battery secure," and suggests work for the day 
in his department; the carpenter asks which of the 
numerous things he shall do first (he has two mates 
and never catches up with his work during the cruise) ; 
there's a hole stove in the second cutter, the garboard 
streak of the launch wants calking, one of the gigs- 
men broke an oar and he must cut over one to fit, etc. ; 
the sailmaker reports a chafe in the maintopsail and 
asks if he can have it unbent and sent down, and re- 
luctantly admits that it might be repaired aloft; the 
boatswain reports that he has been over the ship from 
the end of the flying jibboom to the tip of the 
spanker, that all is in order, only a few new ratlines 
wanted in the topmast rigging, a little chafe in the 
eyes of the rigging, foremast head, and, if you give 
him. time, he'll make a list that would take three 
months to complete. 

Five minutes before 8 a. M. eight bells is reported 
to the commander, who may direct that the topgal- 
lant and royal yards be crossed, or sails loosed, or 
some similar evolution be executed with the hoisting 
of the colors at 8 a. m. If yards are to be crossed 
" all hands are called," the yards sent up, and at the 
third roll of the drum the yards swing across, the 
colors rise to the peak, the pennant changes from 
short to long pennant, the Jack is hoisted forward at 



26 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

bowsprit cap, the bell strikes eight times, the band 
plays, the boats to be used during the day are low- 
ered from the davits, and all at once you can imagine 
a Babel of sounds, but in a well disciplined ship there 
is no confusion, and comparatively little noise, beyond 
the shrill whistles of the boatswain and mates, which, 
by their modulations, indicate " lower away," " hoist," 
" belay," and " veer," so that orders by voice are not 
actually necessary. 

Sometimes in addition to all the above, sails are 
loosed, and it tasks an officer to the utmost to see 
that all goes on well and at once. 

At 9.30 the drum beats to quarters, whereupon 
every man repairs to his station at the gun, or particu- 
lar place assigned him. The officer of the division 
inspects his division with their arms and accoutre- 
ments to see if they are clean and tidy, and that the 
"bright work " is properly burnished for inspection, 
reporting the condition to the executive officer, who, 
in turn, reports to the commander. If that officer 
expresses his desire to inspect the ship he walks past 
the various divisions, who salute with the weapons 
with which they are armed, the powder boys sol- 
emnly bringing the priming wires, which they have 
to clean, to a " present; " and, accompanied by the exe- 
cutive officer, peers into every nook and corner, inter- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. Zi 

spersing the general denunciation with an occasional 
word of commendation, or vice versa. 

When Admiral Porter and others inspected this 
same ship they crawled into. the magazines and visited 
all the store-rooms, and asked me suddenly: 

" What hatch is this, sir ? " 

" The block room, sir." 

" Please open it." 

When the hatch was taken off, and the combings 
appeared clean and whitewashed, they winked at each 
other, and had another obscure one lifted to see if 
there was any neglect. 

I have heard of an austere first lieutenant who was 
seen to lift one of the shell boxes from its rack on the 
gun-deck and mark it with his lead-pencil before re- 
placing it, " to see if those negligent rascals would 
scour it out when they holystoned decks." 

After " quarters " there is generally an exercise at 
great guns, boats, yards and sails, manual of arms, 
broadswords, howitzer drill, or something of the kind, 
after which the ten o'clock boat is called away, and 
those who have permission go ashore, the boat 
shoving off at the stroke of the bell by order of the 
officer of the deck, so that those who are not on hand 
lose their passage and cannot get another boat until 
1 p. M. 

Daring the forenoon the work of the ship occupies 



ZO ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

every man on board, the executive officer is busy in 

consultation with his staff of workmen as before de- 
scribed, the various orders being executed according 
to rule and system. 

For example, the gunner at 7.30 gets permission of 
the executive officer to scrape and relaequer No. 2 gun, 
first division. When ready, about 10.30 a. m. he goes 
to the officer of the deck and states his authority, the 
latter sends a messenger boy to the officer of the first 
division, who comes up and requests that the officer 
of the deck will have No. 2 gun's crew called to quar- 
ters, upon this the gun and crew are turned over to 
the gunner to do as he desires. When he has finished 
what he wished to do, he secures the gun and reports 
the fact to the officer of the deck. 

At seven bells (11.30 a. m.), all work ceases, sweep- 
ers are piped and " a clean sweep down fore and aft " 
ordered; the mess cloths are spread, the ship's cook 
brings a sample of the bean soup or the boiled fresh 
or salt beef to the mast for inspection, and if ap- 
proved he is ordered to " serve it out." At noon the 
officer of the deck reports to the captain — " 12 o'clock, 
sir" — and is ordered to "make it so." Eight bells is 
struck and the boatswain and mates pipe to dinner. 
If at sea the navigator comes up before 12 to take 
observation for latitude, and if in port he takes — a 
drink instead. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAH. 2'J 

An Irishman happening to hear the officer of the 
deck send the orderly to report twelve o'clock to the 
captain, at once remarked, "Bedad I'd like to be a 
captain; all he has to do is just to sit in the cabin and 
they say, ' Eight bells, sir,' and he says, ' Strike it,' 
says he." 

At one p. m. the " hands are turned to," and the 1 
o'clock boat sent ashore; work goes on as before un- 
til 3.30 p. m., when the decks are swept, and supper 
piped at 4 p. m. While the crew are at meals a red 
" meal pennant " is displayed at the mizzen truck or 
at the cross jack yard arm to warn outsiders that the 
men are not to be disturbed. 

At " sunset " the evening boat returns, the colors 
are hauled down, with beat of drum and pipe, and 
the crew are called to evening quarters, which is sim- 
ply a muster to see if everybody is accounted for. 

About six bells (7 p. m.), hammocks are piped. 
"All hands stand by your hammocks:" the men 
stand in line abreast of the netting where their ham- 
mocks are stowed, and at the order " lay up " and 
"uncover" the men detailed as hammock stowers 
swing themselves up and throw back the cloths; 
" pipe down " is followed by the cries of the eight 
stowers calling the numbers, "16," "8," "44," etc., 
and "13," "17," "93," etc., odd. numbers being in 



30 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

starboard watch, even numbers port watch, and 
jstowed accordingly. 

I fear to weary you by too much detail, and if I 
become tedious you must warn me. I simply en- 
deavor to show you that absolutely nothing is done 
on board a man-of-war except by order, and the 
watchful care and supervision of the officers of a ship 
are exercised constantly, or the ship becomes uninhab- 
itable. 

For example, at certain hours only, the men are 
allowed to go to their bags, which contain their cloth- 
ing and which are stowed on the berth deck, under 
the supervision of the master-at-arms. Were it not 
for this, thievery would be more prevalent than it is, 
and the first lieutenant would be kept constantly 
employed as a detective to punish offenders. 

One day the officer of the deck sent me word " that 
there was a man at the mast." Upon investigation I 
found that some one had stolen his shirt — " a bran 
new shirt, sir, with my ship's number marked on back 
of collar, sir, according to regulation, sir/ 1 

I at once turned to the master-at-arms and said 

"Send William Trusty here." 

Trusty had once been a ward room boy, and while 
hovering round the paymaster, who was writing with 
the safe open behind him, he had possessed himself 
of two twenty-dollar greenbacks. He might as well 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 31 

have stolen an elephant, for on the blockade, where 
we then were, there was no opportunity to spend it, 
and he carried the bills around in his cap for two 
months " fearing each bash an officer." One unhappy 
day the officer of the deck accosted him rather 
abruptly, and Trusty, taking off his cap in his bewil- 
derment, the bills escaped and wafted hither and 
thither by the breeze, finally lodging in the lee scupper, 
followed in their flight by the curious eyes of the officer 
and the horrified ones of the unhappy Trusty. 

Well, Trusty got thirty days, bread and water, in 
double irons, and three months' loss of pay, by a sen- 
tence of a summary court-martial, but he never 
reformed, and here he was again. 

Upon his arrival at the mast I said: 

" Trusty, where is this man's shirt ? " 

With the countenance of a dusky angel, and the 
honest, truthful eye of innocence, he replied as fol- 
lows: 

" Mr. D., I know very well that I have done many 
wrong things while on board this ship, that I have 
stolen things, and that I have been guilty of false- 
hood on many occasions; but now, sir, everything is 
different. I have become a different boy, sir, and 
shall never steal or do wrong any more. I've got 
religion, sir, me and Charley Young. . We got it off 
of Jimmy Daggs (Jimmy was a pious contraband we 



82 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

picked up in the Mississippi River). We got it last 
week, sir, and you will never have occasion to punish 
me again." 

Examination, nevertheless, revealed the missing 
shirt neatly folded in Trusty's bag, and poor Trusty 
was led away by the tormentors. 

At eight bells (8 p. m.) the executive officer, after 
a personal examination, reports everything secure to 
the commander, the anchor watch is set, and at two 
bells (9 p. m.), " tattoo," then quiet reigns. At 1<> i>. it 
the wardroom lights are extinguished, unless extended 
by special permission, and reported out to the com- 
mander, and the day in port is ended. A day at sea, 
as you will see hereafter, never ends. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAE. 33 



LETTER IV. 

THE DAY BEGINS THE MARINES A LITTLE STORY 

HOW THE BOATS ARE MANNED " ALL HANDS UP 

ANCHOR " " MAKE SAIL " THE BOATSWAIN AND 

THE ADMIRAL " ONE OP THEM 'ERE KINGS " AND 

THE WIND SAIL THE LOG— TACKING AND WEAR- 
ING SHIP. 

THE DAY COMMENCES 

On board ship at midnight with the midwatch; eight 
bells is 12 o'clock, midnight; one bell is half -past 12; 
two bells 1 o'clock; three bells half -past 1, and so on 
until eight bells, 4 o'clock, commencing again at one 
bell and arriving at eight bells at 8 o'clock a. m., so 
that four bells, for example, may be 2, 6 or 10 o'clock 
a. m. or p. m. 

THE MARINES. 

The larger ships have a marine guard for police 
and guard duty, a sentry being stationed over the 
"scuttlebutt," which contains the allowance of fresh 
drinking water for the men, to prevent its being 
caiiicd away or wasted; a sentry is placed over the 
"brig," in charge of prisoners, one in the gangway 
and one as orderly at the cabin door with a corporal 
and sergeant of the guard in charge. The guard is 



34 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

commanded by a lieutenant usually, the flagship gen- 
erally having a captain as senior officer. 

One day the lieutenant of marines happened to be 
in the cabin when the orderly came in and took off' 
his hat; he took the first opportunity to tell him thai 
" a soldier never uncovers" when he has his equipments 
on. Well, the orderly went into the cabin again, 
shortly after, and in accordance with his late instruc- 
tions kept his hat on. The captain did not notice it 
at first, and went on to give him some message; but 
suddenly observing the hat, he stopped and asked 
angrily: 

"What are you doing with that hat on ?" 

"A soldier never uncovers," replied the orderly. 

"He don't, eh?" said the skipper, " 111 show you 
whether he does or not," and he bounced the son of 
Mars. I noticed after that, that the orderlies always 
took off their hats and bowed low when entering the 
presence of the irascible commander. 

There is, of course, some feeling between the sea- 
men and the marines, as the latter are frequently 
brought in collision with the former as enforcers of 
law, but the contempt of seamen for marines as pop- 
ularly believed, is exaggerated. 

A STORY. 

I remember on one occasion we were >-ittin<x on the 
forecastle, smoking in the twilight, about 7.30 p. m., 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 35 

the ship running along under easy sail, when the look- 
out on the f oreyard reported " light ho ! " The mas- 
ter's mate in charge of the forecastle had frequently 
heard the officer of the deck question the lookout as 
to color of light, red, white, fixed, flash, revolving, etc., 
in order to identifiy the light-house to the satisfaction 
of the navigator, who is responsible for the position 
of the ship at all times; so in order to show his intel- 
ligence he asked: 

" Where away ? " 

" Two points off the starboard bow, sir." 

"Is it a white light or a black one?" shouted the 
incipient admiral. 

Our laughter was turned into a convulsion by the 
prompt appearance of the orderly, with a message 
from the captain, who happened to be on the quarter 
deck, who, placing himself in position saluted and 
said: 

" Mr. Smith." 

"Sir." 

" The captain's compliments, sir, and you are a dis- 
grace to the ship, sir." 

"Aye, aye, sir," said Smith, and the orderly faced 
about and returned to his post without a smile. 

One day Smith went into the cabin with an appli- 
cation for promotion to the grade of acting master. 



oh o.\ A .MAN-ol-WAK. 

The cheerful old skipper looked up amiably, and 
said: 

" Well, sir, what do you want ? " 

"If you please, sir," said Smith timidly, "everyone 
is being promoted now, sir, and I should like to be an 
acting master." 

"Oh! you would, eh?" sneeringly returned the 
captain, " Why in the devil don't you apply for the 
position of a rear admiral, you are just about as fit 
for one as the other. Get out, sir," and he got. 

THE BOATS. 

As I have previously stated, each boat has its cox- 
swain and regular crew, and the boat is designated 
as the gig — 1st, 2d, 3d, and 4th cutter, barge, launch 

and dingey. In the S the boats were named, as the 

Daisy, Gypsy, Juanita, Zouave, Rattler, Lillie, etc., 
and instead of the ordinary custom of having the 
boatswain's mate " call away the 2d cutter," the bu- 
gler blew a call which was more musical, and attracted 
the attention of each of the boat's crew quicker than 
the other. The call for the gig or Daisy, was two 
bars of the soldiers' chorus, from "Fausl ; n tin- ( rypsy, 
had the Gypsy song in " Rosedalo; " the Lillie, " Lord 
Bateman was a Noble Lord," from the same play, 
while the Juanita had a tune of the same name; 
another tune was called "all boats." and at that signal, 
I have seen every boat manned, shoved off. and 



OX A MAN-oF-WAK. 6{ 

lying on oars in line ahead in forty seconds, without 
previous warning. 

By the application of company drill to boats, as 
individuals, signals can be made from the ship, the 
hauling down of the same being the order for execu- 
tion, and any number of boats were thus handled at 
will without a word. 

CALLING THE BOATS AWAY. 

When a boat is called away the boat keeper drops 
his boat to the gangway, the crew take their seats, 
and the coxswain reports to the officer of the deck 
that the boat is manned. Being told to " shove off," 
he gives the order in an under-tone, 

"Shove off," 

" Up oars," 

"Let fall," 

" Give way." 

The bow oarsmen, up oars together, let fall, and 
take stroke with the stroke oar without any order. 

On nearing the wharf, 

"In bow," 

" Way enough," 

"Toss," 
arc the usual orders; 

'• Give way port," 

"Hold water starboard," 

•• Ease Btarboard" 



ob ON A MAN-OF-WAH. 

"Ease your oars," 
and when it is wished to cease rowing, the order is 
simply, 

"Oars," 
preceded, generally, from the coxswain with, 

"Stand by to lay on your oars." 

When boats are fitted with trailing lines, the order 
changes to, 

" Out oars," 

"Trail bow," etc.; 

" Give way strong," 

"Lift her," 

" Break her up, bullies," etc., 
are a few of the choice terms for encouraging a 
crew to pull. 

" ALL HANDS UP ANCHOR " 

Was the morning salutation to those who had not 
been included in the usual call of " all hands " at day- 
light the next day, and speculation was rife as to our 
destination. On board a man-of-war no one knows 
when the ship is going, or where, and you are just as 
likely to be off for Japan in the course of the day as 
not. 

GETTING UNDER WEIGH. 

There was a hurrying to and fro as the men 
repaired to their stations for getting under weigh; 
the captains of tops aloft to see that their running 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 39 

gear was clear and ready for quick work. The gun- 
ner and his gang got up and passed the heavy mes- 
senger, which, passing round the capstan and forward 
through the manger, passed the haw T se-holes near the 
chain, and performing an endless circuit, drew in the 
chain with it, being attached thereto with nippers 
and devil's claws. The carpenter shipped and swift- 
ered in the capstan bars, on spar and gun-deck, one 
above the other, and the order was given: 

''Man the bars; heave round." 

As the chain comes slowly in to the inspiriting 
music of the fife, the men keeping step to the music, 
it is cleaned, and payed below into the chain lockers, 
where it is tiered by the tierers. When the chain is 
"short" the order is given: 

"make sail." 

Sail is set as previously described, and the yards 
braced, according to the direction you wish to cast 
the ship; say main yards braced up with starboard 
braces, and fore and mizzen with port braces. As 
the mizzen or cross jack (crawjick) braces lead for- 
ward the main and mizzen would be braced alike, and 
the fore in the opposite direction. The bars are again 
manned and the anchor lifted by the chain to the 
hawse-hole, the yards are braced, jib hoisted, spanker 
set, and the ship stands on under easy sail until the 
"cat," which is a heavy purchase from the cat-head, is 



40 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

hooked, and the anchor lifted to the cat -head clear of 
the water. The fish then hooks the arm of the 
anchor and pulls it upon the bill-board and the 
anchor is then secured for sea. 

THE BOATSWAIN AND THE ADMIRAL. 

One day one of our large steam frigates was get- 
ting under weigh, and the anchor came up "foul," 
with the chain wrapped around the " fluke." The offi- 
cer of the forecastle, a lieutenant, reported "Foul 
anchor, sir," and proceeded to clear it. The executive 
officer in a few minutes went forward on the fore- 
castle to try and hasten matters. Soon the captain ner- 
vously came on the forecastle, followed by the admi- 
ral. Two midshipmen, stationed on the main deck 
forward at the chains, seeing that there was rank 
enough on the forecastle to bring the ship by the 
head, also climbed up. As all of these experienced 
and intelligent officers were leaning over the bows, 
looking at a poor seaman, sitting, half submerged, on 
an arm of the anchor, on half a ton of mud, the old 
boatswain, who was astraddle of "the cat-head," 
yelled at the man : 

"What are you putting that strap on tJiere for?" 
Put it where I told you." 

The man pointed up at the admiral, and said: 

" IL says put it here." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 41 

"J9e/" says the boatswain, " What in the devil 
does he know about it ? " 

The admiral danced around for a minute, and hol- 
lered "for a stick to hit that old man," but then con- 
cluded to withdraw and attend to his own business. 

WITH SAILS SET. 

The ship being fairly under weigh, the order was 
given : 

"Aloft and loose the royals and topgallant sails, 
clear away the flying jib," 

" Man the sheets and halliards," 

" Let fall," 

"Sheet home," 

"Hoist away." 

The yards were trimmed, the courses let fall, and 
the ship was under all plain sail. As we stretched 
away to the eastward, the ship was hauled on the 
wind, the bowlines, which steady out the leech of 
the sail forward, to prevent its readily catching aback, 
hauled out, windsails trimmed, and the decks washed 
and cleared for ready work. 

"one of them 'ere kings" and the " windsail." 

A "windsail" is a large canvas pipe or shoot, open 

on one side near the top, with wings to catch the 

wind and drive it down the hatch to the lower decks. 

These wings are spread by small ropes called bowlines. 



42 OX A MAX-OF-WAK. 

and, of course, must be trimmed every time there is 
a change of wind or course. You remember the 
story of one of our ships lying at Naples ? On 
being visited by the king and his suite, one of the 
latter, with cocked hat, moustache, sword, etc., was 
exploring the ship and mistook the main hatch wind- 
sail for a mast, I suppose, and leaned against it. 
The officer of the deck was promptly advised of the 
accident by the boatswain's mate, who said: 

" Excuse me, sir, but I think one of them 'ere kings 
has fell down the main hatch, sir." 

" DEAD RECKONING. 

As we were about to lose sight of land the navigator 
was sent for to take his " departure," or distance 
from some known headland to commence the " dead 
reckoning " from. The log was hove and the midship- 
man of the watch reported " ten six, sir." 

" THE log." 
A log chip is about the size of a fourth of a half- 
barrel head, a quadrant leaded on the circumference, 
with a hole in each corner. The log-line attaches to 
two corners, with an attachment to the third corner 
by a plug that on a smart pull comes out and allows 
the log chip to swim on edge, offering little resistance 
to the water. The log-line is marked with a white 
rag for strayline, and every 47.3 feet thereafter with 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 43 

a knot, with half knots midway. A sand glass mark- 
ing twenty-eight seconds is used, and bears the same 
proportion to an hour that 47.3 feet does to a sea mile. 
The line is wound on a reel, the log chip adjusted and 
thrown from the weather quarter, sinking below the 
surface in an upright position. The strayline takes 
it out of the eddy of the ship and the glass is turned 
as the white rag passes the rail; when the sand runs 
out the holder cries "out," the line is checked and the 
line read to the nearest knot, and estimated for 
fathoms, as ten knots six fathoms. The ship was 
going ten and three-quarter knots per hour by the 
log. 

" EEADT ABOUT " TACKING SHIP. 

" Ready about," 

" Stations for stays," 

" Everybody on deck to tack ship," 
was an intimation that we were bound to the south- 
ward. 

As the men repaired to their stations the helm was 
eased down, and as the foresail began to lift, the 
oiilcr was Li-iven, 

•• Helm- alee," 
at which the head sheets were eased off. As the ship 
came up with the wind, nearly ahead, 

" Rise main tack and sheet," 
was given, so that the heavy tack and sheet blocks on 



^■i: ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

the clews of the mainsail would swing clear of the 
boats, and just as the pennant showed the wind dead 
ahead, and the spanker napped warningly, the quick, 
sharp order of, 

" Haul taut," " mainsail haul," 
was given, at which the after-yards were swung 
swiftly and braced up on the other tack. 

" Head braces," 

" Haul well taut," 
and when you are sure that the ship is round on the 
other tack, 

" Let go and haul," 
bracing round the head-yards by main strength, as 
being aback they have to be pulled against the wind 
until sharp up enough to begin to draw with the 

main. The S tacked beautifully, never losing 

her " way in stays." Some ships are less quick, and 
gather stern board after main-yar/ds are swung, and 
you have to be careful to shift your helm and not get 
your ship " in irons," which is when she goes neither 
way except astern. 

" WEARING A SHIP " 

Is when you put your helm up and go round the 
other way. 

You know the story of the whaler that came into 
New Bedford, after having been gone about three 



OX A MA^-OF-WAE. -±o 

years, with only about 150 barrels of oil. One of the 
owners coming on board asked, in the course of the 
conversation, the usual courteous question: 

" Well, captain, how did you like your ship ? " 
"Oh, pretty well," said the grumbler, "but she 
wouldn't * wear nor stay.' " 

"Well, I'm blessed if you didn't stay until you 
wore her all out," somewhat bitterly replied the 
unlucky proprietor. 

SETTING STUDDING SAIL. 

The weather continuing pleasant, and the wind 
hauling more aft, the captain, after church, ordered 
the studding sails set. 

The stu'n's'ls are set on booms, which are rigged 
out on the topsail, lower yards, and from side of ship, 
projecting an additional sail as topg'll't, topm'st and 
lower stu'n's'ls. 

" Get all your port stu'n's'ls ready for setting," 
is the order, then, 

" Rig nut, hoist away the stu'n's'ls," 
getting the tacks well out, then yards snug up, trim- 
ming <l<>\\ n the sheets according to the position of the 
yards. The stifn's'ls are taken in in the same manner. 

" Stand by to take in all the port stu'n's'ls, lower 
away," 



46 on a Man-of-war. 

" Haul down," 

" Rig in," 
starting the tacks when the yards are down to the 
booms. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 47 



LETTER V. 

SHORTENING SAIL. 

About seven p. m. (six bells in the second dog- 
watch) it began to freshen up, so that the captain 
directed the officer of the deck to take in the royals 
and flying jib. The ship was standing along to the 
southward, about two points free, the wind being 
abeam, going about eleven knots, this being her best 
point of sailing. The port watch of hammocks was 
piped down, the starboard watch having the eight 
hours out, and everything was made snug and clear 
for running. 

THE LOOKOUTS. 

As it was now quite dark, the masthead lookout 
was called down, and the regular lookouts stationed. 
There is a lookout at the starboard cat-head, one at 
the port cat-head, starboard and port gangways and 
starboard and port quarters. It is their duty to keep 
a bright lookout and to report anything that they 
see, promptly, to the officer of deck. At every stroke 
of the bell, that is, every half hour, they call their 
station, in the above order, to show that they are 
wid<- awake. Some of the responses are very tunny. 
especially during the first part of a cruise, before the 
men bave quite Learned what is required of them. 



48 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

One landsman called " starboard gangway " all 
right, and when all had finished, fearing that he had 
neglected some part of his duty, startled the officer 
of the deck with the addition, 

''And Jam here," 
provoking that somewhat impatient official to inquire: 

" You ? Who in the d — 1 are you ? " 

EEEFIXG TOPSAILS. 

The wind increased during the first watch, so that 
the captain decided to reduce sail; accordingly the 
officer of the deck notified me, just before midnight, 
that "it was reef topsails." 

I came on deck and relieved the officer of the deck 
in time to call the mid watch, and as " reef topsails " 
means " all hands" the unfortunate starboard watch 
were obliged to stay on deck, with the port watch, 
and help. 

" On deck everybody reef topsails," 
was the order, and in a few minutes the men were at 
their stations. It was then blowing quite fresh; too 
fresh, indeed, for a landsman to go aloft. I however 
took in the topgallant sails and gave the orders: 

" Man the topsail clewlines and buntlines," 

" Hands by the topsail halliards," 

" Haul taut," 

" Round in the weather topsail braces," 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 49 

" Settle away the topsail halliards," 

" Clew down," 

" Haul out the reef tackles," 

" Pull up the buntlines," 

" Stand by to lay aloft and take one reef in the 
topsails," 

" Aloft, topmen," 

" Man the boom tricing lines," 

" Trice up," 

" Lay out and take one reef." 

The men were up and out on the yard as quickly as 
the orders were given, and picking up the sail lighted 
it to windward to enable the captain of the top, at 
the weather earring, to haul it well out and up on 
the yard; then, 

" Light out to leeward and tie away," 

"All ready with the main, sir," 

" All ready with the fore, sir." 

The mizzen always reports first, being a smaller sail 
and having no booms to trice. They generally report 
whether ready or not, trusting to their custom of get- 
ting through first to carry them out. 

" Stand by the booms," 

" Lay in," 

" Down booms," 

" Lay down from aloft," 

" Man the tops'l halliards," 

4 



50 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" Tend the braces," 

" Ease away the gear," 

" Hoist away the topsails," 

" Stamp and go — walk away with her ! " 
are the usual terms of encouragement, and the top- 
sail yards are hoisted and braced in a little more than 
before, the topgallant sails are set, and the watch 
goes below to be called again at 4 a. m. 

An old captain ordered that if the men would 
reef topsails in three minutes, he would serve out an 
extra tot of grog — splice the main brace, as it is 
called. Away went the men, and the first lieutenant 
reported " two minutes and fifty-five seconds, sir." 

" Now," said the old rascal, " I know you can do it 
in three minutes, and if you dorft next time I'll put 
every man of you in irons." 

SUNDAY ON SHIPBOARD. 

The next morning the wind moderated and sail was 
made again, the oflicer of the morning watch having 
shaken the reefs out of the topsails, washed decks 
and freshened things up generally for Sunday. At 
9.30 a. m. quarters and inspection, and then the bell 
tolled for church. Divine service is generally held 
Sunday morning on board a man-of-war, the men 
being seated on capstan bars round about the spar 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 51 

deck capstan, in pleasant weather, which forms a 
very convenient pulpit for the chaplain. 

WHY THEY HURRIED TO SERVICE. 

A visitor on board a man-of-war, before the stop- 
page of the grog ration, on witnessing the haste dis- 
played by the men in getting to church service, said: 

"Why, you don't have to go to church, do you, 
unless you want to ? " 

" Oh, no," replied the man, " we don't have to, only 
we lose our grog if we don't." 

The grog days are over now, however, in the 
United States navy. 

"Now mess-mates pass the bottle round, 
It is the last, remember, 
For our grog must stop, and our spirits drop. 
On the first day of September. 

"All hands to ' splice the main brace' call. 
But we'll splice it now, in sorrow, 
For the spirit-room key will be laid away, 
Forever, on to-morrow." 

THE STORY ABOUT THE COMMODORE. 

They tell a story of an old commodore, at the Bos- 
ton yard, who forbade the chaplain to commence 
service in the chapel before the arrival of his royal 
highness; so when the burly form of the commodore 
entered the chapel door, he began, 



J 



52 ON A. MAN-OF-WAB. 

"The Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth,' 1 
etc. 

The commodore would then comfortably compose 
himself for a nap, confident that the country was 
quite safe, and "that the service was not going to 
the d 1," at least that day. 

One Sunday morning the commodore was roused 
from his nap by something out of the usual routine 
being announced from the pulpit, and he sternly 
addressed the chaplain with: 

" What's that ? What's that ? " 

The chaplain demurely repeated the notice that, 

"By order of the bishop of this diocese, divine 
service will be performed in this chapel on Thursday 
evening next, beginning at half -past seven o'clock." 

" By whose order ? " 

" By order of the bishop of this diocese, sir." 

" Well," thundered the commodore, " I'll let you 
know that I am bishop of this diocese, and when I 
want service in this chapel I'll let you know. " Pipe 
down;" and he cleared the chapel. 

On one occasion he heard a different voice in the 
pulpit from usual, and looking up he asked: 

"Who is that up there? Is that you, Billy 
McMasters ? " 

"Yes, sir." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 53 

(Billy was a religious foreman in the yard, who 
sometimes helped the chaplain along.) 

" Come down out of that," thundered the commo- 
dore, " when I want a relief for the chaplain I'll 
appoint one; don't you ever let me catch you up 
there again," and he cleared the chapel again. 

Another eccentric commander, with a taste for 
theology, startled the chaplain one Sunday when he 
came up in his robes, by saying : 

" I'll relieve you, sir, to-day." 

He accordingly read a chapter from Genesis, and 
finished up at, 

" And the Lord called unto Adam, and said, ' Why 
hast thou eaten of the fruit that I commanded ye not 
to eat.' " 

" Now, my men, what do you think Adam said ? 
Why, instead of coming out strong, and allowing 
that he did it, he did what the meanest landsman in 
the ship wouldn't have done; and what do you sup- 
pose that was ? Why, he laid it on a woman." 

" Pipe down," and church was over. 

SUMMARY COURTS-MARTIAL. 

One day I was ordered as presiding officer of a 
summary court-martial for the trial of another in vet - 
erate thief, also colored, like the previously alluded to 
Trusty. The trial was simply a matter of form, a- 



54 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

everybody knew that he had stolen time and again, 
but the law prohibited the punishment of a man with 
any severity, except by sentence of a summary court- 
martial. 

WHAT THE PRISONER WANTED TO KNOW. 

After the testimony of several witnesses in behalf 
of the prosecution, all tending to criminate the pris- 
oner, I asked him the usual question, before the with- 
drawal of the last one, 

" Do you desire to ask the witness any questions ? " 

"Yes, I do, I want to know, master-at-arms, if 
you kissed dat book to tell de truf, or just to tell 
lies on me, dats what I want to know." 

The question being ruled as irrelevant, I then asked 
him if he desired to call any witnesses in his defense. 

"Witnesses! Not much; you got witnesses enough 
now to hang me." 

The unhappy moke consequently was sentenced to 
thirty days' bread and water and three months' loss 
of pay, at the end of which time he emerged, look- 
ing, if anything, fatter and more complacent than 
before. 

ANCHORING IN HAMPTON ROADS. 

The wind and weather continuing fair we passed 
between the capes of the Chesapeake and anchored in 
Hampton Roads on the following afternoon, where 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 55 

we found a large number of men-of-war, also at 
anchor, awaiting orders from the admiral. 

SENIOR OFFICER. 

It is a good deal of a nuisance to be in the presence 
of a "Senior Officer." You have to follow his 
motions entirely, strike the bell at the same time, 
loose sail and cross yards by signal; the men must 
be dressed in white or blue, as are those of the flag- 
ship; and it is more than probable that the admiral 
will signal suddenly, just when you don't want it, to 
" arm and equip boats," passing in review under the 
stern of the flag-ship for inspection to see if each 
boat be armed with so many rifles, cutlasses and 
revolvers, and supplied with cook stove, fish lines, 
lead patches for covering shot holes, spare oars, ham- 
mers, nails, etc., with fresh water in breakers for 
drinking, pork, hardtack, flints and steel (for matches 
are forbidden on board ship), with which the boat is 
laden nearly to the gunwale. 

The admiral detailed us temporarily for guardship, 
which required us to inspect every vessel, passing in 
and out, to see if papers were in order, and vessel 
properly cleared. 



OD ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

HOW THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMY WAS 
"BROUGHT TO." 

One day the officer of the deck hastily called tome 
that he had hailed a steamer twice with no response. 
I sprang upon the bridge and hailed the steamer 
with, 

"StojD your engine, sir." 

As he did not stop I sung out: 

" Pivot guns crew to your quarters." 

The men came aft with a jump, and down came 
the temporary bulwarks, around swung the gun, and 
" bong " went a hundred pound shell about as many 
yards to the right of the steamer. 

Well, she turned round so quick that it seemed as if 
she might capsize. The captain came jumping out 
of the cabin to know what was the matter, and rue- 
fully exclaimed that I had broken all the glass in the 
cabin windows. 

I called a midshipman and sent him on board the 
steamer with orders to put on airs, and " want to 
know, you know," etc. 

He soon returned, having permitted the steamer to 
proceed, reporting: 

k> Well, sir, I went aboard and sternly asked the 
captain for his papers. He pointed to an army officer 
standing near, saying: 

"'There are my papers.' 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 57 

"I didn't understand, and he added: 
" ' Major-General Halleck, sir, commanding the 
armies of the United States.' 

" * You can proceed,' said I, and returned aboard." 



58 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER VI. 

HEAVING THE LEAD. 

The depth of water is ascertained on board ship 
by " heaving the lead." An ordinary hand lead line 
is from fifteen to twenty fathoms in length and is 
marked at one, two, three, five and seven fathoms, 
with strips of leather, colored rags, and at ten with 
" a piece of round hole with a leather in it," as I 
heard a small boy once say. 

The lead weighs five, seven or ten pounds, accord- 
ing to the depth of water and the speed of the ship. 
The thrower generally stands in the " chains "outside 
the rail of the ship, with a canvas strap around his 
waist to prevent his falling overboard, and swm;, r > 
the lead, launching it well forward, feels the bottom 
as the line comes up and down, and chants, "by the 
mark five," or "by the deep six," as the case may be. 

An Irishman, who could do everything, was sent 
into the chains one day to heave the lead. He com- 
menced chanting away at intervals until the officer of 
the deck, despairing of making out the depth of 
water, came up and asked him what he said. 

" Divil a word did I say, sur. I learned the tune 
only and never caught the words," replied Dennis. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 59 

At sea, when the water is deeper, the deep sea (pro- 
nounced dipsey) lead is used. 

A Dutchman at the lead line, who had not exactly- 
caught the words, chanted in a Dutch monotone: 

" Blainty of va-a-ter he-ere. Not quite zo mooch 
va-a-ter he-ere. You'd petter keep avay from here," 
and as the ship struck in three fathoms of water, 

"Didn't I to-old you so-o ? " 

THE SKIPPER WHO KNEW BY THE TASTE. 

You remember the poem reciting the gift possessed 
by the skipper of a Nantucket schooner, of being 
able, by the taste, to tell exactly where the schooner 
was. An incredulous mate, on one occasion, rubbed 
the well tallowed lead in the earth of a box of plants, 
which some lover of flowers had brought from Nan- 
tucket, and carried it in to the slumbering captain, 
as a specimen of the sounding just taken. The skip- 
per rubbed his eyes and sleepily tasted. Springing 
from his bunk, he rushed on deck exclaiming: 

" Nantucket's sunk, and here we are right over old 
Mann Ilackett's garden ! " 

SALUTES AND CEREMONIES. 

While we lay in Hampton Roads we were con- 
stantly visiting and receiving visits from other offi- 
cers of the squadron, as well as from some French 
and English officers, whose ships were lying, tempo- 



60 OX A MAN-nK-WAIi. 

rarily, in the Roads, and the side was being piped, 
and two, four, six or eight side boys constantly rush- 
ing to the gangway, as officers of different rank came 
on board. 

When the President of the United States visits 
one of our men-of-war, he is received at the gangway 
by the admiral, commanding officer, and all the offi- 
cers of the ship, in full uniform, the crew at quarters 
for insj)ection, the marine guard drawn up with the 
band on the quarter deck, the national flag is dis- 
played at the main, the drummer gives four ruffles, 
the band plays the national air, and a salute of twen- 
ty-one guns is fired; the same ceremony also taking 
place on his leaving; the yards may also be manned 
unless forbidden. On one occasion when the Presi- 
dent visited one of our ships informally, dispensing 
with salute and ceremony, one of the men rather 
indignantly asked another, " who that lubber was on 
the quarter deck that didn't ' douse his peak ' to the 
commodore ? " 

"Choke your luff, will you," was the reply, "that's 
the President of the United States/ 1 

"Well! ain't he got manners enough to salute the 
quarter deck if he is ? " 

"Manners/ What does he know about manners? 
I don't suppose he was ever out of sight of land in 
his life." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 61 

On one occasion while lying in a foreign port, an 
officer from shore, I have forgotton of what rank, 
came on board officially to visit the ship. I inter- 
viewed his aid to know what the Dago's rank was. 
(Sailors call everybody that speaks Spanish, Italian 
and Portuguese, Dagos.) He replied that he was enti- 
tled to six guns. I said we give five or seven guns, 
but never six, take seven; but no, he persisted six 
guns was enough, and so we fired him his salute of six 
guns. 

The Chinese national salute is only three guns, and 
saves a great deal of expense in the way of powder. 

BOY OVERBOARD. 

We had a number of apprentices on board the 

S , and they were drilling one afternoon at the 

various drills, and among others there was a crew in 
the fore chains exercising "heaving the lead." It 
seems that, contrary to express orders, one of the boys 
was standing on one of the upper half ports which 
close the gundeck port-holes. When open these ports 
are triced up on their hinges and kept level by the 
port lanyard. Another boy also jumped on to the 
port, and their united weight broke the lanyard; the 
port falling, threw one of the boys into the water. 
I happened to be standing on the gundeck, near the 
ward room hatch, and hearing the unusual rush on 
deck, sprang t<> the hatchway. 



62 ON A MAN -OF- WAR. 

" Boy overboard, sir." 

I ran aft to the life buoy, which hangs on the quar- 
ter, and pulled the bell-pull, dropping the buoy 
instantly. I could see nothing of the boy, however, 
although I judged that the rapid current of the Dela- 
ware River would have carried him down to about 
where the life buoy was then floating. The boat 
keeper in the gig, which Avas lying at the lower stud- 
ding-sail boom, quickly dropped his boat astern. 
Two boats, which were exercising at oars close by, 
pulled promptly up, but in vain, the little fellow did 
not come up. 

I turned, and looked forward at the eager sea of 
faces turned to me, as if to read in my countenance 
the fate of the boy. 

" Go on with your exercises," I said shortly. 

And almost instantly one could hear "by the 
ma-a-rk five " from the very spot from which the boy 
fell. 

" Present arms," 

" Run in," 

" Serve vent and sponge," 
from the other sections drilling close by, and for the 
time the little drowned shipmate was forgotten. 

A few days afterward, when the body was found, 
an ugly mark on the forehead showed that he had 



ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 63 

probably been stunned by striking his head against 
the gun in falling, and did not therefore come up. 

We had a sad sort of a funeral, for the little fellow 
was a great favorite with all. A few days after a 
woman in deep black came on board "to see the cap- 
tain." The captain, who was really a great big ten- 
der-hearted fellow, though he would scorn to acknowl- 
edge such a thing, suspected that it was the boy's 
mother, and gently suggesting that it was the first 
lieutenant that she wished to see, " slid out " quietly, 
and sent me in to " tell her all about it." 

" You officers don't have much of anything to do 
on board of ship except in time of war, do you ? " 

I have often wished that I could capture a few of 

the idiots that talk in that way, and set them at 

work — real worh on board ship for about a month. 

t 
I think that they would begin to realize that they 

had been only inlaying hitherto. 

I had to listen to this poor woman's story, and see 

her tears and sobs as she explained: 

" You know, sir, that poor little Dick was a son of 

my first husband, sir, and then, sir, you know times 

was hard, and I didn't know what to do, and Mr. 

L , sir, came along and I thought it would be 

i best, you know, sir, and make a home for Dick, and 
I I married again. Well, Dick didn't seem to get along 

well with his father, and he was forever at me about 



<»4 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

him, so I shipped him as an apprentice boy, as you 
know, sir, and now the poor little fellow's dead, and 
he might have lived, you know, sir." 

I wonder if any one thinks that it was easy for me 
to listen to this sad story; easy for me to try to con- 
sole this poor mother in her great grief; and easy for 
me to go back on deck and run the vast, never-ceasing 
machine of a man-of-war with my heart still like a 
great lump in my throat. 



ON A MAN-UF-WAB. 65 



LETTER VII. 

BOXIXG THE COMPASS. 

" Can you box the compass, sir ? " 
" Well, sir, that depends upon the size and shape 
of your compass ! " was the reply of an embryo mid- 
shipman one day on board ship. 

That is all very well as a story, but no person can 

r be on board a ship more than a week, without finding 
out that he must learn the compass if he would 
understand much of what is going on around him. 

The four cardinal points of the compass are north, 
south, east and west, from the initials of which the 
word " news " is formed and derived, being collected 
from all directions. As it is necessary to steer 

f between these points, subdivisions had to be made; 

, as. half-way between north and east became northeast, 
and the opposite point southwest; half way between 
north and northeast became north northeast, and 
between east and northeast, of course, east northeast; 

_ this, not being minute enough, was subdivided again, 
and became north by east, and east by north, etc., 
the learner remembering that there are thirty-two 
points of eleven and a quarter degrees each; that the 
initials of any point exchange exactly frith the oppo- 



66 ON A MAX-oF-WAi:. 

site point, as, the opposite of northeast by north, is, 
of course, south west by south. 

Boxing the compass consists in repeating the names 
of the points, commencing at any point, and going 
either way round to the place of beginning; as, nor', 
nor' by east, nor' nor'east, nothe-east by nor', nothe- 
east; nothe-east by east, east nothe-east, east by nor', 
east; east by sou', east southeast, south east by east, 
southeast; southeast by south, south southeast, soutli 
by east, south; south by west, sputh southwest, south- 
west by south, southwest, southwest by west, west 
southwest, west by south, west; and so on. 

You remember the sailor, who didn't know the 
Lord's Prayer, upon hearing the chaplain repeat it, 
asked him to say it backwards and triumphantly 
proved the better knowledge of his profession by 
boxing the compass backwards and forwards. 

" How do you head?" called the captain one day 
to the man at the wheel. 

" Nor'west by west, a half west, westerly, sir," was 
the answer. 

" Put another west to that, and I'll give you a tot 
of grog," said the skipper. 

"Aye, aye, sir," said the quick-witted helmsman. 
"Nor'west by west, a half west, westerly, Captain 
West." 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. *>» 

Fortunately for the story and the helmsman, the 
skipper's name was West. 

VARIATION OF THE COMPASS. 

Variation of the compass is the difference between 
the true north and the north as shown by the compass, 
and varies with the position or location of the 
observer; the variation of the compass is marked on 
the charts as ascertained by observation, and should 
be corrected from time to time, as it is not constant, 
but varies from year to year. Variation is designated, 
easterly or westerly, according as the true north is to 
the eastward or westward of that point as shown by 
the compass. The Navy Department requires that 
observations, which are called azimuths, or amplitudes, 
be taken daily, to find the variation of the compass, 
and that a record of the same be kept; from an aver- 
age of these observations the charts are kept cor- 
rected. 

DEVIATION OF THE COMPASS. 

There is another correction to be applied to a com- 
pass, which is called deviation; this is a local error in 
the ship itself, and must be ascertained, and either 
removed or corrected. 

In an imn ship, like the ill-fated Huron, surrounded 
as the compass was with iron guns and iron bolts, 



68 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

you will readily see that this sensitive magnet, the 
compass needle, would be attracted or repelled 
variously, according to the direction of the ship's 
head; the compass being aft, the greater bulk of iron, 
attractive or repellant, according to which pole of 
the needle was nearest, would naturally be forward: 
if the ship was headed north, the deviation would 
probably be at a minimum; if east or west, at a 
maximum. 

HOW TO CORRECT THIS DEVIATION. 

In order to ascertain the deviation, the ship is 
swung from a buoy, with her head successively on 
each point of the compass, a bearing is taken of 
another observer stationed at a considerable distance 
on shore, who at the same instant notes the bearing 
of the ship, and telegraphs the reading of his compass, 
which has no deviation; if the two bearings are the 
reverse of each other, there is no deviation on that 
point; if they differ, the difference is the deviation, 
and so on for each point of the compass. 

The deviation may be easterly, the variation west- 
erly, and the difference would be the correction when 
applied to the compass, when heading, say northwest; 
but when heading southeast the deviation would 
more likely be westerly and would be added to the 
variation as a correction. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 69 

Generally, where the deviation is great and varied, 
it is corrected by two magnets laid in the deck, in 
such positions, determined by experiment, as will 
overcome and correct the attraction of the ship. 

I remember on one occasion the ship ran away, and 
like to have got overboard, because some careless 
chap stowed his knife away in the binnacle. 

HOW BOATS ARE LOWERED IN A SEAWAY. 

There is great difficulty in manning a boat at sea 
in rough weather. The boat rises and falls with each 
wave, while the ship rolls violently from side to side, 
making it no easy matter to avoid either swamping 
the boat or dashing it in pieces against the side of 
the ship. The only chance in the boat's favor is "in the 
practicability of dropping it suddenly into the water 
from the davits, allowing it to shove off instantly 
from the side of the ship. Xo one can appreciate 
the extreme danger of lowering a boat in heavy 
weather unless he has witnessed the operation itself. 

I have seen a boat being hoisted to the davits; one 
man in the bow at the forward fall, another aft to 
hook the after fall; the boat plunging up and down, 
the ship rolling fearfully, as only gunboats can roll; 
the falls snatched and manned ready to u run away 
with her" at the order. The officer of the deck 
watches for a smooth time to fck hook on," then u run 



70 ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 

her up." If successful the boat rises above the rail 
before the ship has time to roll again; if not, the 
boat flies out from the side almost at right angles 
with the davits, and crash! comes back against the 
ship's side. In lowering a boat the bow and stern 
men at the stoppers have to look alive and unhook 
the falls together, or the after one a little the first, 
as should the after fall hold, the boat will inevitably 
swing round and fill as the ship goes ahead, and then 
good-bye boat. 

A LOWERIXG APPARATUS. 

In order to launch a boat surely and successfully a 
boat lowering apparatus is used in the navy, which I 
here briefly describe. After the boat is hoisted the 
ordinary fall is unhooked and the boat suspended by 
chains, the link of chain in the bow and stern passing 
over a tumbler or hinge, the chain coming then to 
a small barrel or capstan inboard. When the boat is 
to be lowered the crew takes its place and the boat is 
lowered by the chain until within a few feet of the 
water, when by pulling a small chain, which runs 
round the inside of the gunwale, the tumblers are 
released, the hinges fly up, allowing the links of chain 
to slip off, and the boat is free, bow and stern at the 
same instant. There are several patents, all based on 
the principle described, for lowering boats in a seaway. 



ON A MAJS-OF-WAR. 71 

Usually boat-falls hook to a ring and link in the 
bow and stern of the boat, and it is difficult for the 
men to hook on simultaneously. This is somewhat 
obviated in the " whale " boats, a term generally 
applied to boats sharp at both ends, by having rings 
instead of hooks in the lower blocks which hook on 
to the outside stem and stern of boats with a snap 
like a dog chain, to keep them from unhooking. 
When a boat is being lowered in heavy weather, the 
the sea or long painter in the bow of the boat is 
always led out and forward, and made fast in the 
gangway to prevent accidents. 

WHO LET GO THAT FOR'uD FALL ? 

There is an amusing sketch in a book of etchings 
by Park Benjamin, Jr., a midshipman in the navy, 
of a boat hanging by the stern fall to the davit, the 
bow nearly in the water, two or three midshipmen in 
various ridiculous attitudes falling into the water, 
with another striking out for a swim, the whole 
easily explained by the interrogation, 

" Who let go that for'ud fall ?" 

AS RELATED BY THE MIDSHIPMAN. 

Speaking of boats reminds me of a conversation 
which took place in a boat belonging to a German 
frigate on one occasion. The midshipman, who had 



72 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

charge of the boat had been visiting one of our ships 
and was much pleased with the position, privilege 
and duties of our midshipmen on board, which 
seemed more favorable than in his own service. On 
returning, however, to the landing on shore accom- 
panied by a couple of our midshipmen, it occurred to 
him to ask: 

"Wat atority do you haf in de poats?" 

" Which ? " said the Yankee. 

" Yell, I mean of de mens don't do yoost as you 
say vat you do mit 'em ? " 

" Oh! " replied one, " I report them to the first lieu- 
tenant, when I return to the ship, and have them pun- 
ished." 

" Ish dat all ? " said the German, " I shows you 
mein atority," and he accordingly rose, and with the 
convenient tiller, knocked over the unoffending, 
stroke oarsman; and with the remark, 

" Dat ish mein atority," 
he resumed his seat, perfectly satisfied that when 
it came to questions of real business his service was 
by far the more satisfactory. 

FIRE Ql'ARTERS. 

"Ding dong," " ding dong," went the ship's bell 
rapidly, and from the instant rush from every part of 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 73 

the vessel one would have supposed that " the ship 
had fallen overboard." 

" Fire ! " 

Fire is a terrible thing on shore, even when viewed 
from a place of safety, but transfer the scene to a 
ship, with the realizing sense that you have five miles 
of water under you, unless you put it out (I mean the 
fire), and you can probably understand the deep inter- 
est we have in fires on board ship. In order to have 
a fire drill effective, the fact that it is a drill, and 
not a real fire, must be found out afterward. The 
commanding officer, generally when he feels dys- 
peptic, I think, and hates mankind, comes browsing 
along, and capturing a small messenger boy sends 
him forward quietly to ring the ship's bell like 
blazes — and he does. I think I never have seen more 
perfect contentment on the face of a boy than when 
charged with this fiendish errand; and he rings and 
rings, until throttled by some forecastle man, who, 
fully appreciating his enthusiasm, having been there 
himself, persuades him that he was only told to ring 
a few taps. 

At the signal every one goes to his quarters; then 
the first lieutenant calls out: 

" Fire in the fore hold." 

Down come the windsails, on go the hatch gratings 
and tarpaulins; every one in the masters 1 division, 



74 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

like the veterans in the late unpleasantness, seems 
anxious to "avoid the draft." 

Away aft goes the gunner to the cabin door to get 
the keys of the magazines to flood them, if ordered. 
Xo. 1 gun's crew will work this chain pump, No. 2 
this one in the main chains; this division of fire- 
men form a line of buckets from starboard gangway, 
that one from port gangway, one from starboard 
quarter, another from port quarter, and so on. 

Along come rushing pipemen with two lines of 
hose ready to flood anything and everybody, and in 
less than one minute a dozen lines of buckets and 
two lines of pipes await the order to, 

" Start the water." 

All this time no one knows, except the dyspeptic 
individual previously referred to, and the messenger, 
perhaps, whether there is a fire or not. 

The executive officer gets even with the captain 
sometimes, however, if he has not been consulted, 
by suddenly discovering a fire aft, and, 

" Fire in the cabin," 
sends a delighted stream of buckets ami lines of 
dampish hose into the cabin, to no small inconven- 
ience of the practical joker who started the row. 

It is the duty of the commanding officer of the 
marine guard to post sentries over the boats to pre- 
vent their being lowered without orders from the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. {Q 

proper authority, to release prisoners, and to hold the 
balance of his guard on the quarter-deck, armed and 
equipped, for use where needed to preserve order and 
discipline. 

If at sea, or under way, the course of the ship is 
altered to bring the fire to leeward as much as pos- 
sible, the reason of which is obvious. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 



LETTER VIII. 

ORDERED TO A BLOCKADING STATION GETTING UNDER 

WEIGH IN A HURRY CAPTURING A CONFEDERATE — 

THE RIO GRANDE A VERY INCREDULOUS CAPTAIN 

HOW A YOUNG NAVIGATOR SAILED A SHIP ALONG 

THE CREST OF THE ANDES HOW THE CAPTAIN \\ AS 

CONVINCED THE PECULIAR HABITS OF SAILORS OF 

DIFFERENT NATIONS — CUTTING OUT A SLOOP TWO 

SAILORS' YARNS. 

Shortly after our arrival at Ship Island, Gulf of 
Mexico, we were ordered by the flag officer, D. G. 
Farragut, to blockade the mouth of the Rio Grande 
River. So, one morning bright and early the pipes of 
the boatswain's mates were heard, followed by the 
repeated cry of, 

" All hands," 

"All hands," 

" Up all hammocks," 

" Now tumble up there," 

" Show a leg," 

" Get out of there, you idlers," 

" Clear the berth-deck, master-at-arms," 

" No one excused," 

" It's up anchor this morning." 

In ten minutes the hammocks were all up and 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. <i 

stowed in the nettings, and the captains of the differ- 
ent parts of the ship were quickly moving to and fro, 
quietly directing their men so as to get as ready as 
they dared before the order " up anchor " was actually 
given. 

In a few moments after the anchor was hove short, 
and in obedience to the order of the executive officer, 

"Aloft, sail-loosers," 
the men swarmed aloft, and in less time than it 
takes to write it the gallant little " Portsmouth " was 
under way with all plain sail, standing to the south- 
ward and westward, bound for " La Boca del Rio del 
Norte," as the mouth of the Rio Grande is called by 
our Mexican friends on the south side. 

THE FIRST PRIZE. 

We sailed along pleasantly without incident 
until almost within sight of the coast, when we dis- 
covered a schooner standing to the southward, which 
we quickly overhauled. Running up the French flag 
we were much pleased to be answered by the display 
of the rebel stars and bars. Amid considerable 
excitement a boat was lowered, and with twelve men 
armed to the teeth I pulled off for the schooner, the 
k ' Portsmouth" at the same time hauling down the 
French flag and displaying the stars and stripes at 
the peak. We pulled alongside, and clambering up 



78 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

the side of the schooner (I with my sword in ray 
teeth, being armed to the teeth), we sprang on board, 
prepared to cut down almost anything — excepting, 
of course (I cannot tell a lie), any cherry trees. 
There was one poor devil on deck who was quietly 
steering the schooner. After lowering the sails I 
boldly, yet cautiously, advanced upon this man and 
sternly asked, 

" Where is the captain, sir ? " 

" Oh ! we're all captains here," he answered noncha- 
lantly, "but Captain B is below," he added, "if 

you want Azm." 

We persuaded the captain and all hands to come on 
deck, and found that our prize was the schooner 
" Wave," from Xew Orleans, bound to the Rio Grande. 
We transferred his cargo of sugar to one of the sup- 
ply steamers shortly afterward, and used the schooner 
itself as a target for exercise at great guns. 

I think I got some $43 prize money about twelve 
years afterward from the sale of the " Wave's " 
cargo. 

The next day we anchored off 

THE MOUTH OF THE RIO GRANDE, 

where some seventy merchant vessels lay at anchor. 
I was surprised to find that the mouth of the river 
appeared to be only a couple of hundreds of yards in 
width instead of a mile, as I had always imagined. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 79 

I found that the commander shared my opinion, 
and decidedly refused to believe me, as navigator 
of the ship, declining to accept any such dirty little 
river as the great river of the north. In Vain I 
pleaded that the sun could not lie, that figures were 
figures. He declined to accept the situation, until 
I returned from boarding most of the vessels at 
anchor and reported that they were all under the 
i same impression. 

SAILING OVER THE ANDES. 

I could not blame him. He knew the story of a 
young officer who was attached to a ship bound for 
Rio, as navigator. The captain distrusted his ability 
and secured all the charts of the ship so the navigator 
could not see them, requiring him to send in the lati- 
tude and longitude every day as usual, ascertained 
by observations of the sun. On the arrival of the 
ship in Rio the captain showed the young mathema- 
tician that by his reckoning, as sent in from day to 
day, the ship had skirted the Andes Mountains all 
the way down, being impartially sometimes on one 
side and sometimes on the other of the lofty range, 
congratulating him on the feat of balancing this 
sloop-of-war successfully on a mountain peak, 23,000 
feet in height, without knowing it. 

Of course, the navigator not having access to the 



80 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

charts, could not see where his latitude and longitude 
would place the ship, and supposed all the time that 
he was the equal, if not the superior of Mr. C. Col- 
umbus, as a navigator of the seas. Well, 

THE CAPTAIN NEVER LET UP 

on me; he would not believe that that little stream 
was the Rio Grande River. I took sights every day 
and required the midshipmen to take sights with me, 
showing, accurately, our position by the sun; he 
would not believe it, and, had it not been that an 
American, who had lived in Matamoras for ten years, 
and came armed with a permit from Hon. W. II. 
Seward, Secretary of State, to trade, assured him on 
his word of honor, that the opening in question, was 
the Rio Grande, he never would have believed it, and 
the baleful stigma of deception, want of accuracy, 
and general untrustworthiness, would have been 
equally shared between the sun of our solar system 
and the son of my father. 

The really good old gentleman has, however, long 
since passed away, and I hope that he reached the 
port for which he was bound, his course being 
marked out for him by a skillful and unerring navi- 
gator in whom he could have implicit trust. 

I had a g^reat deal of amusement in 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 81 

BOARDING THE DIFFERENT VESSELS 

lying at anchor off the port. The Englishmen 
would hospitably offer a " drop a sherry," proffering a 
brimming tumbler to carry out the idea; the French- 
men showed their friendly feeling in cognac, and the 
German kindness overflowed in the shape of Schie- 
dam schnapps, and Holland gin. One old German 
had a little old galiot, that looked as if it had served 
as a tender to old Von Tromp, when he carried the 
broom at his masthead in the English Channel; he 
had his wife, nurse and four children on board, 
cooped up in the little cabin, 10x12 feet, and they all 
seemed as fat and contented as if they occupied a 
Schloss Unter den Linden, Berlin. He was very hos- 
pitable, and was profuse in his offers of " yust a ledle 
more cherry cordial." 

The appearance of a little German-American, 
shortly after, showed that the climate of Mexico — 
Texas, tempered by the cool breeze of the Gulf of 
Mexico, must have assimilated greatly with that of 
their own Fatherland. 

We remained on the coast of Texas some two or 
three months, part of the time at anchor, and part of 
the time cruising off and on. Now and then the 
monotony would be varied by a terrible gale of wind 
called a "Norther," which put out ground-tackle or 

6 



82 (>X A MAN-OF-WAR. 

our canvas to a severe test, according as we were at 
anchor or under sail. 

THE OTHER PRIZE. 

One noon we saw a sloop standing in shore toward 
the mouth of the river. I started in pursuit with a 
twelve-oared cutter, and we had a neck and neck pull 
to cut him off before getting within range of the 
guns at the mouth of river. Fortunately for us there 
was not much wind, and we captured the sloop 
within a mile and a half of her destination. It 
proved to be from New Orleans, with a cargo for 
Matamoras. So, we transferred the cargo to our own 
ship, and sunk the sloop. 

I believe I got some $25 prize money from the cap- 
ture some ten years after. 

Being short of fresh water, the commander resolved 
to go to the mouth of the Mississippi for a supply, 
and we accordingly got under weigh, and after a 
a pleasant trip of a few days we anchored off South- 
west Pass in time to participate in the capture of 
Forts Jackson and St. Philip. 

Apropos of Mexico, 

THEY TELL A STORY 

of the captain of a brig at Vera Cruz who took a 
sailor who spoke Spanish, on shore with him to inter- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 83 

pret for him. The conversation was somewhat as 
follows: 

Sailor — " Habla usted Espafiol Seiior f " 

"Si, Seiior, perfectamente bie?i" replied the Mexi- 
can. 

" JBueno," said the sailor, "in cuantas diets can you 
make a new main yard for the brig ? " 

"No entiendo " (I don't understand), said the Mexi- 
can. 

"No en ten day? " said the sailor. 

" Oh, come on, captain, he says he can't do it in 
ten days." 

Another linguist on shore, at the same port, came 
up excitedly to a native and asked: 

"Look here, Seiior, ha visto usted a caballero a 
cavorting down the streets on a denied big gray 
horse with a Mexican saddle on ? " 

"No entiendo?" said the native with a peculiar 
shrug of his shoulders pertaining to the race. 

"No entiendo f " don't you understand your own 
lingo, you infernal Dago ? 

The boatswain of the U. S. Portsmouth was very 
profane, and showed a great deal of disgust at the 
agricultural aspect of many of the crew, really good 
men, but quite unused to a man-of-war. One day he 
apostrophized them on the foreyard somewhat as 
follows: 



84 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

" Pick up that sail, will you ? " 

"No! pass in the leech first; that's no way to stow 
that bunt, Oh! you farmers!" 

"Hold on with that bunt jig, will you?" 

" Who in the d 1 told you to pull up that bunt 

jig? My grandmother would make a better sailor 
than you." 

"Look aloft; the devil would have been a sailor 
only he couldn't look aloft," etc. 

One day hearing me hail the lookout aloft, 

" Fore topmast crosstrees there," 
several times without reply, the boatswain who was 
standing on the forecastle said: 

"That's a farmer up there, sir; he don't know that 
he's on the crosstrees, say haymow and he'll jump 
overboard." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 85 



LETTER IX. 

THE MISSISSIPPI FLEET AT THE CAPTURE OF NEW 
ORLEANS. 

About two weeks before the passage of Forts Jack- 
son and St. Philip by the squadron under the command 
of the flag officer, David G. Farragut, I was attached 

to the United States sloop-of-war P ; we had 

come to the mouth of the Mississippi for water, and 
Farragut directed that we should remain and join in 
the attack on the forts. 

At this time, April, 1862, the fleet, of some twenty 
odd sail including the Hartford (flagship), the Brook- 
lyn, Iroquois, Westfield and others, were anchored 
below the point where the river made a sharp turn 
before reaching the forts, while Porter's mortar flo- 
tilla, some twenty or more schooners, lay along 
behind the point, close in shore. The mortar schoon- 
ers had clothed the tops of their low masts with 
branches of trees, so that they could scarcely be 
distinguished, as they lay behind the thick trees lin- 
ing the river bank. Our commander, accordingly, 
ordered our spars to be dressed in the same way, and 
we loomed up like a line of battle ship, securing us 
the honor of a visit from the flag officer, with a sharp 
order to, 



00 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" Take those things down," 
much to the satisfaction of the executive officer and 
the chagrin of the captain. 

FIRE RAFTS 

While thus lying at anchor, a favorite device of 
the Confederates was to send down enormous fire 
rafts, by which they hoped to fire some of the ships 
anchored in the stream. As the current ran, at that 
high condition of the water, at nearly five knots an 
hour, the arrival of these rafts excited a lively inter- 
est, I can assure you. 

" Send boats to tow fire rafts," 
would be the signal, nearly every night from the flag- 
ship, and away would go four of our boats toward 
the approaching raft coming down the river. Two 
of the large launches from the heavier classed vessels 
would throw grapnels into the rafts, and the other 
boats forming two lines ahead, sometimes thirty in a 
line, would tow the raft slowly, but surely, across the 
river, allowing it to ground and burn itself harm- 
lessly out. 

One night a monster raft, filled with turpentine, 
tar and rosin, came down the river and created con- 
siderable alarm. The boats promptly tackled it, as 
usual, but found that they could not stem the current, 
as the raft was unusually lar^e and difficult to handle. 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR 87 

About six hundred yards from us, lay, at anchor, 
a store ship filled with powder, shell and ammunition 
for the squadron; she was directly in the line of the 
approaching and rapidly descending fire raft; the 
boats made superhuman efforts to tow it across the 
riyer and swing the raft clear, but it was eyident that 
they would be unsuccessful, when suddenly the West- 
field, formerly one of the New York ferryboats, see- 
ing the danger that threatened the whole squadron, 
promptly slipped her chain, steamed boldly up, and, 
with two streams of water playing oyer her bow, and 
her crew at "fire quarters," put her nose fairly 
against the raft and drove it square across the riyer, 
where it grounded safely and burned out. 

"Cheers/" 

You could have heard that cheer, from nearly 7,000 
throats, ten miles. 

OXE OF THE MORTAR SCHOOXERS 

lay about 100 yards ahead of us, and a continuous 
line of them lay farther on up stream. Every five 
or ten minutes throughout the night, bang ! went a 
thirteen-inch shell, up, up; its course marked, like a 
meteor, by the burning fuse; then, turning down, 
down, swiftly plunging into Fort Jackson. By care- 
fully weighing the powder, and noting the angle of 
inclination during the day, they were enabled, at 



88 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

night, by means of range lights in the trees, to keep 
up an accurate fire, continuous night and day, raining 
those terrible shells constantly into the devoted fort; 
and, as by their explosion, they tore great chasms in 
the ground and casemates, it must have been terrible, 
indeed, for the defenders, who were powerless to 
reply. 

One night a great conflagration illumined the fort, 
and we learned afterward that it was caused by the 
burning of the citadel, fired by the explosion of a 
shell from the mortar fleet. As it happened, the fire 
was so near the magazine that it could not have been 
opened, and had we gone by that night, we would 
have suffered but little from the guns of Fort Jack- 
son and saved many valuable lives. 

RUNNING THE FORTS. 

On the night of the 24th of April, 1862, the signal — 
two red lights at the peak of the flagship — to move 
was observed, and the vessels got under weigh, and 
steamed slowly up the river. The chain, which the 
rebels had stretched across the river, and which had 
been the occasion of many an exciting and daring 
attempt, had been finally cut, and nothing remained 
but to go by the forts. It seemed almost like a 
plunge into the hereafter, for the " rebs," too, had gun- 
boats above the forts, and terrible rams, ironclads, 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 89 

torpedoes, and what else we knew not, and to get by 
the forts didn't seem so very desirable a thing to do 
after all; however, there was the order, and there 
was no help for it. Our ship being a sailing sloop-of- 
war, was lashed alongside a steamer to be towed up 
opposite Fort Jackson and anchored, to divert the 
attention of that fort as much as possible from the 
steamers. There is such a thing as being too conspic- 
uous, in having too much attention, and I would have 
preferred to have been one of those " born to blush 
unseen," and Araste my — what do you call it ? — some- 
where else. Well, history tells 

HOW THE GALLANT FLEET WENT BY, 

amid a terrible cannonade from both forts, the east- 
erly column of battle passing within 300 yards 
of the guns of St. Philip, 150 of them grinning 
defiance, almost on a level with the river bank; his- 
tory tells how the mortar fleet rained thirteen-inch 
shells into the forts (I counted thirteen in the air at 
once); history tells how the Varuna, running fast 
and ahead of everybody, engaged the Governor Mor- 
gan broadside and broadside, and almost alongside, 
until suddenly a little ram scooted under the stern of 
the Morgan and rammed the Varuna so she sunk at 
once, her officers and crew crowding on to the fore- 
castle which was just out of water, alternately 



90 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

swearing at, and dodging the shots from the passing 
" rebs " flying up the river to escape the triumphant 
ascending fleet. History tells how the gallant old 
Mississippi, a side-wheel wooden frigate, which didn't 
know anything about rams, chased the dreaded ram, 
Manassas, until she ran ashore and was fired by her 
crew. Somebody tells how 

THE FIRST LIEUTENANT OF THE BROOKLYN 

(she was fighting her starboard battery and there 
wasn't a soul on the port side), happening to look to 
port, saw the Manassas approaching and about to ram 
the ship, recognized an old shipmate and a former 
officer of the Brooklyn itself, in command of her, and 
shouted : 

"Warley, you d d scoundrel, don't you run into 

us!" 

and giving the Brooklyn a rank sheer to starboard 
avoided the full force of the blow, and not being able 
to do anything else, danced up and down on the 
bridge and fired his revolver at the ironclad; history 
tells how the U. S. S. P participated in the gal- 
lant attack, etc., but history is painfully silent as to 
me, as to my heroism, my-a-undaunted courage as I 
led my men-a-a-below the water-line. Nbto, after 
waiting fifteen years, I am permitted to tell the Btory 
myself — in print, too, and not at ten cents a line, 
either. 



ON A MAX-OF-WAR. 91 

FIGHTING FORT JACKSON. 

Well, we stestmed up until our guns would bear on 
Fort Jackson and anchored, and our escort left us to 
the mercy of the rebel guns. A line was sent on 
shore from aft, and our broadside was brought to bear 
by springing the ship. As soon as I had seen the 
anchor chains secure, as that was in my department, 
being navigator of the ship, I repaired to the topgal- 
lant forecastle where my division was working an 
eight-inch shell, and a thirty-pound rifle gun. Being- 
short of men, I acted as captain of the rifle gun, and 
sighted and fired the gun myself. The daylight was 
just breaking behind us, and we were as pretty a tar- 
get as one ever saw. I could see the flash of the 
rebel guns, and hear the whistle of the shot, as it 
approached nearer and nearer, until it either struck 
short, or passing over screamed: 

" Whar is he ? whar is he ? " 
and plunged into the water beyond us. I trained, 
sighted and fired away with my rifle gun, however, 
taking a good long while to sight, while crouched 
somewhat behind it, apparently only safer than when 
standing up. 

Just then the eight-inch gun, on being fired, 
jammed the carriage of the rifle gun so that I could 
no longer train it; in vain we tried to get the eight- 
inch out of the way — we could not budge it ; shot and 



92 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

shell were striking and exploding all around us; one 
or two gunboats that failed to get by had returned 
and passed down astern of us; the fleet had got by 
and our mission was over; but the fort had its mis- 
sion too, there being no one else in sight — all of its 
guns that would bear, were trained on us — us, who 
only asked to be let severely alone. 

ONE LONG SHELL 

(I learned afterward that it was really only seven and 
a quarter inches in diameter and thirty inches in 
length, but it looked as long then as the stock of the 
bower anchor and as big around as a barrel) struck 
short about twenty feet from us, and fortunately for 
us, on the side of a wave, and rose, passing high over 
the ship. When it struck the wave first I saw it as 
plain as if it were floating on the water, and half 
closed my eyes, certain that it would ricochet and hit 
me right in the stomach. I drew a long breath when 
it passed over, and that is what I could not have done 
if it had followed the course I had marked out for it. 

" Whew ! bang ! " 
came a sixty-four pound shot over from aft. The 
captain, first lieutenant, paymaster and clerk, humbly 
saluting it as it p. p. cVi over the poop and struck one 
of my gun's crew, just five feet ten inches below 
where I stood, bounded up, and expending itselt' 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 93 

under the topgallant forecastle, about ten inches from 
my feet, rolled harmlessly down in the water ways. 
Well, we slipped and got out of there soon, very 
soon. The rapid current of the Mississippi never 
seemed so much overrated as it did to us, when we 
depended entirely upon it to take us out of reach of 
the shot and shell which the fort so carelessly flung 
after us. 

The poor fellow who was struck was quickly car- 
ried to the main hatch and lowered, on a litter ready 
for the purpose, to the main hold, where the surgeons 
were ready in attendance, the blood pouring from his 
leg in great splashes, which, crimson as it was, 
blanched the faces of many who stood at their guns 
wondering if they would be next. 

The doctors took off his leg, but the shock was too 
great, and it was my painful duty, the following day, 
to read the service over his now forgotten grave on a 
small island in the Mississippi River. 

AND WE ALL WERE DODGING. 

When the shot and shell were flying the thickest, 
an old captain of the forecastle, who was in command 
of the eight-inch gun, was dancing and ducking 
around, and I yelled at him angrily (I was even a 
trifle more frightened than he), 

" What in the deuce are you doing, you can't 
(lodge 'em." 



y4r ON A MAN-oF-WAK. 

" Oh, yes, you can," said he, " I did at Peiho." 

It seems that the old fellow had never been under 
tire before, excepting when some of our shins joined 
the English in an attack on two forts in China, and 
he dated everything from the attack on the Peiho 
forts. 

I could not help laughing, frightened as I was, as 
I stood on the tOpg'U't forecastle, and looked aft. 
Whiz, would come a shell close over the poop, and 
down would duck all hands. It was no evidence of 
courage at all, for one ducked involuntarily the same 
as one winks when the eye is threatened; but Pay, you 
ought to have seen Pay. He had been flattered by 
being made signal officer, though there were no sig- 
nals to make, and was stationed on the poop. When 
I saw him he was holding on to the mizzen rigging 
and his feet, in a spasm of ducking, having slipped 
off the ladder, he was dangling about eight feet 
above the quarter deck, and holding on so tight to 
the mizzen rigging as to squeeze the tar out of it. 

"I suppose Mr. D ," said a young lady once to 

me, "that you get so thoroughly accustomed t<> dan- 
ger and being under fire that you don't mind it at all/' 

"On the contrary," I replied, "I never have been in 
serious danger more than seven or eight times since I 
have been in the service, and I assure yon, that I was 
more frightened the last time, than the first." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 95 

" Why," resumed she, " a friend of mine, a Mr. 
Smith, he was a master's mate, I think, in the Missis- 
sippi squadron, told me that he really enjoyed it, 
and wasn't one bit afraid." 

farragut's joke on butler. 

I must tell you of a joke on Gen. Benjamin 
F. Butler, perpetrated by Admiral Farragut. As 
Farragut was, strictly speaking, not much of a joker, 
it is but fair that he should be given credit for this 
one. 

The Tennessee came dashing up the river to New 
Orleans, one day, and anchored near the flagship; the 
captain being on shore in the afternoon, was met by 
an officer who stated that Gen. Butler would be 
pleased to see him. 

He accordingly waited on the general, who sternly 
took him to task for passing the quarantine, coming, 
as he did, from Pensacola, where there was yellow 

fever raging. As soon as Capt. J could recover 

from his astonishment, he, somewhat sarcastically, 
reminded Gen. Butler that he was a naval officer, 
under the command of an officer of the navy near at 
hand, to whom he was amenable, and that Flag Offi- 
cer Farragut would probably be the person proper 
for him to complain to. 

In a rage, Gen. Butler sent a communication to Far- 



ifb ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

ragut, asking " if the quarantine laws were to be 
obeyed." 

" Certainly," replied the admiral. 

" Then," wrote the autocrat, " the Tennessee hav- 
ing violated the quarantine, and having communi- 
cated with the other vessels, the whole squadron is 
hereby placed in quarantine and will communicate 
only with the flagship, which will be permitted to 
use the landing at the foot of Canal street only." 

The unparalleled assurance shown in placing the 
fleet, upon which the safety of the city solely 
depended, the rebels having 30,000 men at Camp 
Moore, only a few miles distant, in quarantine, was 
immense. 

Farragut, was, however, equal to the occasion, and 
calmly acquiesced as to the quarantine, but added 
that the proper place to ride out a quarantine would 
be at the quarantine grounds, thirty miles below the 
city. 

Gen. Butler at once hastened to withdraw his 
demand, not being quite sure but that he would have 
reached the quarantine station himself, at about the 
same time with Farragut, had the squadron been sent 
away from New Orleans for as much as twenty-four 
hours. 

I was once attached to a vessel that anchored in 
the harbor of Funchal, Madeira, and the first thing 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. ^7 

we did, when we got ashore, was to take a horseback 
ride round that beautiful island. 

Some of the men had liberty also, and, of course, 
every one of them captured a horse as soon as they 
got fairly ashore. About half way up the mountain 
we came across a little mizzen topman, flushed and 
evidently very warm, riding a spirited little horse, 
with a stone tied up in a silk handkerchief slung to 
his tail. 

The first lieutenant laughed and said: 

" What are you doing with that handkerchief, 
Brown ? " 

" Why, you see, sir," said Brown, "that when I 
first hitched her up she pitched badly, being too 
much by the head, so I just rigged this stone on aft 
and brought her down to her bearings, and she sails 
now like a clipper, sir." 

7 



OS ON A MAX-OF-WAE. 



LETTER X. 

TRANSFERRED TO THE SCIOTO — A TRIBUTE OF RESPECT 

TO THE MEMORY OF A BRAVE OFFICER INCIDENTS 

OF RIVER DUTY — A PRACTICAL JOKE ON AN Ac J OSLO 

MASTER A LARGE OWL AND A SMART CAT THE 

TALE OF A PIG A COOL CAPTAIN A RATH KB 

EXPENSIVE ATTEMPT TO ANCHOR A FOG BANK. 

One afternoon, in the year 1862, the gunboat Scioto 
was coming down the Mississippi River on her way 
to New Orleans. As she turned the bend near 
Donaldsonville a battery of field artillery opened on 
her, together with a fire of small arms from some 
troops. 

AN ENGAGEMENT. 

The Scioto rounded to promptly and returned the 
fire with her eleven-inch shell gun, her rilled Parrot 
and twenty-four pound howitzer, and succeeded in 
driving off the attacking party, but did not escape 

without loss herself. A six-pound shot struck the 
executive officer, who was standing near the eleven- 
inch gun, tearing off his arm and striking him in the 
side and hip, causing his death in a few minutes. 
One man lost an arm and one or two others were 
wounded by splinters. 

On the arrival of the Scioto at New Orleans I was 



ON A HAN-OF-WAR. 99 

at once detached from the frigate Mississippi and 
ordered as executive officer in the place of the dead 
lieutenant whom I knew so well. When the body 
was taken to the steamer for transportation to his 
home in Massachusetts, two lines of boats from the 
different ships of the squadron, forming a procession 
nearly half a mile in length, testified to the ready 
sympathy shown to a braye gentleman, by his asso- 
ciates, in the only way left to them. 
We were on this 

GUERRILLA DUTY, 

up and down the river for nearly a year, and I assure 
you we were kept busy. One day we were protecting 
a steamer taking sugar at a plantation. The squad of 
soldiers went out, as usual, toward the sugar house, 
were surprised by guerrillas, the morning being 
foggy, and shot down. We heard the shots and 
opened fire in the direction, and by good luck, sent a 
shell right in the midst of the band, though invisible 
to us on account of the dense fog. We brought in 
the corporal of the party, who, with another wounded 
by the guerrilla shots, had hidden in a cane-field. 
The corporal stated that they were searching for him 
and would have got him, but that our shell came 
right in amongst them and drove them off. 



100 ON A MAJN-OF-WAB. 

EPILEPTIC OFFICERS, 

On another occasion I was just ready to go on 
shore, with a party, to see if I could find a couple of 
howitzers that we heard the rebels had mounted in 

the neighborhood. I called to the acting master, who 
was to accompany me, to know if he had the rat-tail 
files to spike the guns with, if necessary. He turned 
to answer me, when I observed his features working 
convulsively, and down he went in an epileptic fit. 
I skirmished round on shore for an hour or two, but 
did not find any signs of guns. Just then I heard a 
shout, and hastening over to the other end of my 
skirmish-line, found the captain of the forecastle in an 
epileptic fit. Well, it took six men to hold him and 
bring him on board, and as I had only six left I con- 
cluded to let the guns go, and returned to the ship. 

The acting master was the caterer of the ward- 
room mess, and not long after, while returning in the 
market boat, having been on shore to buy chicken-, 
eggs, etc., he fell over in another fit, which lasted him 
a week before he was fully sane again. 

One day while he was still confined to his room, we 
picked up 

A BIG OWL 

struggling in the river, and the idea occurred to me to 

play a joke on F when he came on deck again. 

So I prepared everybody, and when F came up 



.OX A MAX-OF-WAR. 101 

one morning, he asked where we were. I pointed to 
the city, and said: 

" Baton Rouge." 

He looked at me doubtfully, as we had never been 
up so far before, and said: 

"Sure?" 

"Certainly," said I, "that is Baton Rouge, but," I 
said, turning to the old owl, who at once rose upon 
tip-toe, spread his wings wide, and opened his mouth, 

" F , that is a pretty way to squander our mess 

money, to go ashore and give fifty cents and a half 
plug of tobacco for that old owl, and bring it on 
board for a turkey." 

F looked at me incredulously and then at the 

owl, who at once executed his pleasant little grimace 
again, and walked forward without saying a word. 
I saw him asking, evidently, if that was Baton Rouge, 
and then pointing to the owl, and as both answers 
corroborated with my remarks, he was evidently 
staggered. He took the first opportunity to throw 
the owl overboard, but never alluded to the turkey, 
and I don't think he ever knew, for certain, whether 
he bought that owl or not. 

We had 

A VERY SMART CAT 

on board who, having always been petted, was afraid 
of nothing. He came up cautiously to a couple of rab- 



102 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

bits one day, and would sit up and stroke their ears 
with his paw, being evidently much amused to see 
them jump. 

During owl week he had discovered the owl sitting 
on a cleat near the quarter deck, and prowled round 
to see what it was. He finally got quite near to Mrs. 
Owl, and sitting up, was about to stroke her ear, I 
guess, when suddenly the owl rose upon her toes, 
standing nearly three feet high, spread out her wings, 
and blinking rapidly, opened her mouth. Tom turned 
a series of back somersaults, and with his back arched 
double and tail of same thickness as his body, he 
took up a position on the hammock rail, and swore at 
the owl for five minutes. 

THEY WANTED PORK. 

One day we made a raid on a plantation and cap- 
tured a lot of horses, mules, sheep, pigs, turkeys and 
geese, and took them over to Donaldsonville for the 
benefit of the troops there, keeping some mutton 
and poultry and a couple of pigs for ourselves. As 
there was so much poultry the captain directed the 
paymaster not to serve out any allowance of salt pork 
to the men, thinking that, of course, they would be 
much pleased with the substitute. At 12 o'clock, 
noon, there was a deputation of men at the mast "to 
know if they couldn't have their ration of pork that 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 103 

belonged to 'em, as half the men didn't want to eat 
them fresh water things (geese)." 

Sailors are always willing to accept any little extras, 
but not at the expense of a single thing that belongs 
to them. 

THAT PIG OF OURS. 

We had kept for our own use two pigs, and they 
were suffered to run loose about the decks. 

About six bells (3 p. m.), there was a commotion 
forward, and a man ran aft, to the officer of the deck, 
to report that one of the pigs was overboard and 
making for the shore. Away went two boats in pur- 
suit, confident that they would pick him up in a 
moment, and bring him on board, but they reckoned 
without their pig, a host in himself. Just as the bow 
oarsman would reach down to grab him, piggy would 
dive and come up on the other side of the boat, amid 
the peals of laughter from the ship. The boats 
would back water, give way port, back starboard, 
stern all, then pull like blazes, but in vain, and it was 
not until piggy was exhausted, that they managed to 
get a line round his neck and haul him in. 

When we went down to the blockade off Galveston, 
piggy accompanied us, and ate impartially at every 
mess in the ship. Old Charley Brown, a contraband, 
had him in special charge, and promptly resented any 
indignity offered to the pig. I remember one day 



104: ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Charley came up in a rage, because the men were 
laughing to see the pig slide backward and forward 
across the deck, from one scupper to the other, as the 
ship rolled heavily, and did not offer to help his pro- 
' tege. Charley promptly choked the luff of the pig 
with a big damp swab so he could remain quiet, not- 
withstanding the 'motion of the ship. As we were 
keeping an armed watch, and every eye on the alert, 
old Charley would march up and down during the 
mid-watch, with a pike over his shoulder, with which 
he would now and then make dashes at the hammock 
rail, to repel any imaginary boarders who might 
come over, the pig, trotting gravely at his heels, only 
making an occasional detour round the engine room 
hatch by way of a flier. Finally, through stress of 
hunger, we were compelled to kill the pig. Charley 
refused to do it, intimating that misfortune would 
certainly follow it, and on the evening following, in 
his French patois, he told me confidentially, that the 
pig had appeared to him and marched up and down 
the deck with him as usual. 

" Do you believe in ghosts ? " 
he asked, and I was forced to admit that I did. 
Charley was consistent, and refused to eat a morsel 
of the fresh pork furnished by his old friend. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. lU5 

IMPUDENCE. 

One of oar vessels on the South Pacific station, 
was ordered by the admiral, to go to one of the 
Pacific Islands. 

"Well, the captain didn't want to go at all, so he 
waited until he was notified sharply to obey the 
order. 

Not having gone on the day following, the fleet 
captain came on board, and said that the admiral's 
order was, "that if he was not under weigh by 12 
o'clock, he would relieve him of his command, and 
prefer charges against him." So about 10 minutes of 
12 he got under weigh, and started, bat before he got 
two miles he made signal to the admiral, asking per- 
mission to " part company." 

Squadron rules, "that no vessel shall part com- 
pany with the flagship, except by permission," is a 
good thing, but the very impudence of his signal, 
after being almost kicked out, made it very funny. 

PLAYING BOTH BOWERS. 

A great many years ago one of our sloops of war 
Avas in the straits of Magellan, when it became neces- 
sary to anchor. The irascible commander was giving 
orders himself, and called oat sharply, 

" A hand by the starboard anchor." 

The executive officer gently asked if it would not 



106 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

be well to get a cast of the lead, to see how deep the 
water was first. Annoyed at his evident mistake, the 
obstinate old fellow bellowed out: 

"No, sir; let go the starboard anchor, sir," 
and away she went. Each bower anchor has 150 
fathoms, 900 feet of chain, and this chain skipped 
out lively; when it came to the bitter end, which is 
lashed to a bolt in the kelson, there was a wrench, 
and the last section, like a huge snake, writhed out 
at the hawse-hole in a shower of sparks. 

" The anchor is down, sir," called out the officer of 
the forecastle cheerfully. 

"A hand by the port anchor," shouted the captain, 
and the port anchor with its 900 feet of chain went 
down like a fiery serpent, in search of the starboard one. 

There being no more anchors handy, the com- 
mander yielded charge of the deck to a less expensive 
subordinate, better acquainted with the lay of t In- 
land, who succeeded, after bending the sheet chains, 
in anchoring the ship to a better advantage. 

OX TIIK BANKS OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 

" Oh, captain, what are we stopping for?" 

« Fog." 

"But, captain, its clear overhead." 

" Ain't going that way." 

"Oh, captain, is it always foggy here?" 

"How in the devil do I know, T don't livt here?" 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR 107 



LETTER XL 

THE SCIOTO OFF GALYESTOX — WATCHING FOR A SAIL 

ORDERED TO PASS THE BATTERIES THE HATTERAS 

CHASES THE ALABAMA AXD THE ALABAMA SIXES 

HER THE PAYMASTER'S OMELET A STICKLER 

FOR RAXK HE FOUND THE MAX WHO FURXISHED 

THE CHEESE A ROLLIXG GUNBOAT. 

The Scioto was for some six months on the block- 
ade 

OFF GALVESTOX, TEXAS. 

There was a good deal of rivalry between the gun- 
boats as to which should report first that a sail was 
in sight. So in order to stimulate our mast-head 
lookouts to watchfulness I had given directions that 
if our lookout reported a sail first, he would be 
relieved at once, but if the lookout of a rival gun- 
boat got ahead of him he was to be kept up there all 
day. Thanks to this competitive system, we were 
generally the first to report a sail. 

ALWAYS READY. 

The steam was kept low with the fires banked; the 
chain brought to the capstan, with the anchor just 



L08 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

under foot, ready to trip at a moment's notice, and 
orders given, so that at the cry of, 

"Sail ho!" 
from the mast-head, the men sprang to the bars and 
commenced to heave round, the engineer spread 
his fires, the quartermaster bent on the signal num- 
ber 1258, which telegraphed to the flagship, 

"Strange sail to the eastward," 
and as soon as answered up went interrogatory 890, 
meaning, 

" Can I give chase ? " 

The captain came up at once, and in one minute 
from the discovery, the ship was under weigh, 
standing out to sea. 

One Saturday the commodore announced that on 
Monday, if pleasant, we would 

ATTEMPT TO PASS THE BATTERIES 

and enter Galveston; so we were all feeling corre- 
spondingly uncomfortable, not, of course, because we 
were afraid at all — in fact we were the original par- 
ties who were " longing for the fray," men of gore, 
whose trade was war and rapine, more particularly, 
perhaps, the latter. Still we were familiar with the 
reputation of the Texas riflemen as marksmen, ami 
we knew there were a good many chances in favor 
of some losing the number of their mess, and leaving 






ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 109 

their families unprovided for; some of us were even 
not insured, so reckless had we become, inured to toil 
and danger as we were, bronzed by the tropic sun for, 
say, three or four months. 

Well, we looked up our little matters, some of us 
had our hair cut; others hunted up their bibles, 
which were safely stowed away in their lockers, and 
all wore a pretty serious air, I assure you. Sunday 
was a delightful day, and the prospect that Monday 
would be pleasant was very good, or rather, very 
bad, indeed. 

About 4 p. m. we observed that 

THE HATTERAS WAS [JNDER WEIGH, 

with signal, 

" Strange sail to the eastward," 
flying. I accordingly doomed our unfortunate look- 
out to stay up there until sunset for not seeing it 
iirst; as it turned out, I have forgotten whether he 
was ultimately rewarded for it or not. As the Hat- 
teras steamed off in pursuit, having permission from 
the flagship so to do, she signaled, 

" Strange sail suspicious," 
and later, 

" Strange sail positively an enemy," 
soon after disappearing in pursuit. Let me say here 
that this last signal was not understood at the time. 



110 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

About dusk (say 7 p. m.), as the captain and myself 
were pacing the quarterdeck, we noted flashes of heat 

lightning, as we thought, to the eastward, but soon a 
low thunder which followed led us to believe that it 
was firing of great guns. We timed the flash and 
report, and estimated the distance to be twenty miles, 
allowing 1,120 feet per second for the velocity of 
sound. 

The captain at once took his gig and went on board 
the flagship, leaving me to get the ship under weigh. 
After some delay the flagship Brooklyn, the Katahdin, 
and the Scioto were standing out to sea, in pursuit. 
Well, we steamed until 1 a. m., and finding nothing 
the Katahdin and Scioto returned to their anchorage. 

THE HATTERAS SUNK BY THE ALABAMA. 

About 7 a. m. the next morning a white whale 
boat was seen approaching the ship from the shore. 
We watched it with considerable curiosity, as we 
supposed it to be another flag of truce from the " rebs." 
As it dashed up alongside it proved t<» be the Hat 
teras's gig. The acting master in charge came mi 
board and touched his cap, and answered my question 
of, 

" Where is the Hatteras, sir?" 
with, 



> 




OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 1 II 

" The Hatteras was sunk at 7.30 last evening, sir, 
by the 290." 

" Walk down in the cabin, sir, and report to the 
captain," 

I said, and giving directions to drop the boat astern, 
and let the crew come aboard to breakfast, I was 
obliged to await the result of his interview w r ith the 
captain, anxious as I was to learn the particulars. 
The crew of the boat were the center of attraction 
forward, and our men soon knew as much as they 
did. 

We at once got under weigh, and put to sea in pur- 
suit of the Brooklyn. As soon as she saw us she 
came after us, under full steam, hoping that we were 
the Alabama, and seemed correspondingly disgusted 
upon discovering our true character. Upon compar- 
ing notes we found that the Brooklyn had picked up 
two of the Hatteras's boats, lashed together, with 
clothing in them stained with blood, and that she dis- 
covered the Hatteras, sunk in nine fathoms, with 
her mastheads sticking out of w r ater, where she now 
is, I suppose. 

A SHORT FIGHT, BUT A HOT OXE. 

We afterwards learned that Capt. Blake was posi- 
tive in his mind that the vessel he was approaching 
was the Alabama; he had his cutlass ground sharp, 



11^ ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

and determined to run down his enemy, far his 
superior in force, and cany him by boarding. 

As he approached he hailed, 

" What vessel is that ? " 

"Her Britannic Majesty's ship Spitfire," was the 
reply, at the same time running up the English flag. 

"I'll send a boat aboard of you," said the Ilat- 
teras's captain. 

"Aye, aye, sir," 
was the reply, and as the gig approached her the Ala- 
bama lowered her ladder, and showed a light over 
the side, it being just dusk. 

At this exciting moment the captain of the Ala- 
bama called out: 

"This is the 290," 
and bang! went his broadside into the Hatteras, 
down came the English flag and up went the Stars 
and Bars. 

The Hatteras replied nobly and struck the Alabama 
twenty-two times with her shot and shell. 

The shot of the Alabama, however, soon pierced 
her thin iron hull, and penetrating her boilers ren- 
dered her helpless, enveloped in a cloud of steam, 
the Alabama steaming round in a circle pouring in 
shot and shell. 

Finding it impossible to do else, Capt. Blake sur- 
rendered and transferred his crew to the Alabama 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 113 

just in time to escape the going down of the Hat- 
ter as. The Alabama at once steamed off to the east- 
ward, and plunging into the darkness was soon 
beyond pursuit. 

Capt. Semmes remarked that he didn't want to 
fight any more men-of-war, as he suffered consider- 
ably with his fight with the Hatteras, but he did try 
it again off the coast of France, and was sunk by 
the United States steamer Kearsarge in a fight of 
two hours, escaping himself in the English yacht 
Deerhound, which by some peculiar notion of neutral- 
ity picked him up and ran off with him. 

"It is an ill wind that blows nobody good," 
is a true proverb. By the loss of the Hatteras we 
were too weak to attack the Galveston forts, and the 
attack was postponed. Hence these tales. 

AX EGG STORY. 

One day our commander happened to be on board 
the flagship, when an oflicer came on board from 
shore with a flag of truce. While waiting to be 
shown into the cabin the officer recognized in him an 
old class and shipmate. They shook hands and gos- 
siped ;i while, and, upon leaving the ship, the "' reb " 
offered to send our skipper a couple of dozen of eggs. 
When the eggs arrived the commander sent a half 
dozen down into the wardroom to the paymaster. 



114: ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Well, Pay was delighted. Eggs was eggs just then, 
as we had lived on our rations for the last three 
months; so he bragged about his eggs until the rest 
of the mess were dissolved in envy. The following 
morning, at breakfast, an omelet was placed in front 
of the paymaster which certainly contained, at least, 
five eggs. The paymaster was furious. 

"Steward! where's the steward ?" he shouted. 

While the boy went forward after the steward, 
Pay regarded the omelet gloomily, and coldly invited 
each member of the mess to take some. All declined 
save two, who ate with great satisfaction the portion 
allotted them. Notwithstanding his evident annoy- 
ance, Pay commenced to eat some of the omelet, 
when the steward appeared with a covered dish in 
his hands. 

"Steward!" shouted the paymaster, "what in the 

d 1 do you mean by cooking all of those eggs at 

once? Besides, I told you I wanted 'eni boiled." 

" Here's your eggs, sir," said the unruffled steward, 
uncovering the dish and setting five eggs down on 
the table, " one of 'em was bad." 

A smile broke over the face of the paymaster, and 
after finishing the omelet and offering the boiled eggs 
to each, he reached out and took one himself. He 
looked at it curiously, and with a muttered swear he 
dashed it down, and rising from the table, rushed on 
deek. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 115 

I did not understand, but managed to gather from 
the explanation furnished by one of the omelet eat- 
ers, interrupted by frequent laughter, that he and the 
other confederate had sat up half the night blowing- 
out the contents of the eggs with straws through 
small orifices; the result of the blowing was made into 
omelet, and the shells being boiled filled with water, 
and for a moment deceived a person into taking one. 

I was real glad that I did not take omelet with 
mine. The missing sixth egg was accounted for by 
the blower's stating that in his haste and fear of 
detection, he had dropped it on the wardroom floor. 
It might have appeared at breakfast, however, as a 
dropped egg, but didn't. 

Every day or two after the paymaster would burst 
into the wardroom in a rage because some allusion to 
eggs had been dropped. 

AN OFFICER OVERBOARD. 

They tell the story of the eccentric old captain, 
now dead, formerly in command of the North Caro- 
lina. He was a martinet and very profane. On one 
occasion he fell overboard in crossing the gangway 
plank from the cobb dock to the ship. The sentry 
in the gangway promptly called out: 

" Man overboard ! " 

" An officer, you blasted fool ! " 



116 ON A MAN-OF-WAR, 

spluttered the captain, as he rose to the surface for 
the second time, 
" An officer, sir." 

NO CHANCE FOR THE WINNER. 

The same captain bantered the executive officer of 
the ship into a wager to race with him, the former 
having, as he supposed, a crack boat and crew. 

The race came off, but the irascible commander, 
seeing that he was being badly beaten, made the sur- 
rounding air blue with his sulphurous oaths, while 
executing a war dance in the stern of his boat, 
ordered the other to, 

" Lay on his oars," 
and, upon their return to the ship, put the executive 
officer under arrest for disrespect to his superior ami 
commanding officer in daring to pass the former 
without permission. 

There is nothing to show that the captain ever 
paid the bet, but the ship's log records the fact thai 
not long after the executive officer was transferred to 
a sea-going ship, where racing boats to win, could be 
more profitably engaged in with safety to the leading 
boat. 

JUST THE MAN HE WANTED. 

An old man-of-warsman took his seat in a passen- 
ger car one day, attracting some considerable atten- 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 117 

tion by his dress and manner. One of those meddle- 
some sort of people, described in that laughable 
book "On Wheels," moved over, and took a seat 
alongside the sailor. 

" In the navy, eh ? " 

The sailor nodded affirmatively. 

" Well," said the interlocutor hesitatingly, " I am 
not exactly in the navy myself. I am a contractor — 
that is, I furnish cheese to the navy." 

" Oh ! you are, are ye ? " said the sailor menacingly, 
" you are just the chap I've been looking for." 

And accordingly he knocked the aspirant for naval 
honors over the car seat, and added, as he looked 
inquiringly up, and down the car, 

" Now show me the son-of-a-gun that furnishes 
butter." 

X. ROLLING GUNBOAT. 

" Twice ten tempestuous nights I rolled, resigned 
To roaring billows and the warring wind." 

The Scioto rolled terribly, when in the trough of 
the sea, to the great detriment of our crockery; though 
we always had sand bags lashed round the rim of the 
table to save the pieces. I have seen an officer vibrate 
between the table and the bulk-head holding a plate 
of soup in his hands, his chair slipping back and forth 
over the smooth oil cloth of the ward room floor. 

One of our officers, returning from a visit, said, 
admiringly, 



118 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" That New London is a bully little steamer." 

" Why?" 

"Because she rolls so confounded fast that the 
dishes don't have time to slip off the table." 

I have heard an old sailor yarn, where a schooner, 
he was in, rolled clear over one night, and so easy, 
too, that they'd never have known it, but that every 
man had a round turn in his hammock cleiw. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 119 



LETTER Xn. 

" Now on their coasts our conquering navy rides, 
"Waylays their merchants, and their land besets." 

THE BLOCKADE OFF GALVESTON A LITTLE BATTERY 

PRACTICE " HE WHO FIGHTS AND," ETC. IN A 

VERY SERIOUS PREDICAMENT WHY THE CAPTAIN 

" SET 'EM UP FOR THE BOYS " HOW THE CAP- 
TAIN WAS SHOT IN THE NECK THE REBEL RAM 

ARKANSAS RUNS THE GAUNTLET THE PHILOSO- 
PHY OF DESERTION THE RETORT DISCOURTEOUS 

IN THE IRISH CHANNEL. 

While on the blockade, off Galveston, the gunboats 
used to get under weigh at daylight, and run down 
to the flag-ship for company, returning to their 
stations just after dark. This enabled the officers to 
visit one another during the day, and tended to mis- 
lead the rebels as to where we lay during the night. 
Had we selected any particular anchorage, it Avould 
have been easy for blockade runners to have run in 
by a route far enough away from the gunboats to 
have escaped observation in the darkness; and again, 
a permanent anchorage might have enabled a ram to 
come out some pleasant, obscure evening, and sink a 
gunboat or two. 



L20 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

DRAWING THE ENEMY'S FIRE. 

One afternoon we steamed slowly in toward Gal- 
veston, and threw some shell into the city, aimed at 
the captured steamer Harriet Lane, which lay at a 
wharf inside. We succeeded in having her towed 
away up the bay, and also succeeded in drawing the 
fire of the shore battery near by, as well as fire from. 
Fort Point, some two and a half miles distant. 

I remember looking through the glass, trying to 
see the battery, as located by the captain, when a 
shot came whistling just over us; and, do you know, 
that I could not get a focus on that glass to save me, 
and it was a good glass, too. The long shots from 
the batteries on the Point were 

TRYING TO THE NERVES, 

I assure you, on account of the time elapsing between 
the puff of smoke and the arrival of the shot; the 
time was probably only ten seconds, but if a fellow 
was dancing around you with a big club, and you 
were waiting for him to hit you most anywhere, you 
wasn't sure where, time would be lime. A puff of 
white smoke would shoot out from the fort, and we 
knew that something was coming. After a while you 
would lieai- a murmuring sound, like the wind in a 
distant grove, growing dec pel- and fuller, until, like 
the blast of a hurricane, it rushed over and struck 



ON A MAX-OF-WAR. 121 

the water near by, throwing a column fifty feet into 
the air, simultaneously relieving the suspended re- 
spiration of 150 sets of lungs, whose owners were 
earning their living literally by the sweat of their 
brows. Well, we just put our little helm a-starboard, 
and dusted out of that, a parting shot throwing the 
spray quite on board, and having the extraordinary 
effect of increasing the revolutions of the screw to a 
maximum. 

After dark we got under weigh, to go to our 
anchorage for the night, and steamed off to the 
northward and eastward. 

As we approached Fort Point, the captain thought 
he would explore the channel a little, and stood close 
in toward the fort. Suddenly, with an easy grating 
slide, the little steamer was 

HARD AND FAST AGROUND. 

As the fellow who asked for gape seed, in New 
York, would say, we backed her, and we backed her, 
and we backed her; and we rolled her, and rolled 
her, and rolled her; for two hours we worked to try 
and get her off, without success. We sent a boat to 
the flagship for assistance; got a heavy kedge out 
with a hawser to the capstan, and backed her and 
rolled her again, but to no purpose. 

The captain then gave me orders to throw over the 



122 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

coal, and to lighten the ship as best I could. I asked 
for one more trial before throwing away coal that 
was worth, down there, $20 a ton in gold, and he 
consented to hold on a little longer. You can 
imagine that we were anxious to get out of there 
before daylight revealed our position to the batteries 
not a mile distant, and as the daylight would bring 
us certain demolition, we cast an anchor out of the 
stern of the ship, and dreaded the day. 

OFF AT LAST. 

I stationed every man in the ship along the star- 
board side, and made them a little speech, and at the 
order 

" Rush," 
they rushed violently over to the port side; again the 
" rush " order, and back went every son of 'em, 
laughing, as if it were a good joke. Then we 
manned the capstan again and walked away with 
the hawser. The man in the chains quietly watched 
his lead, and reported no movement; the engines 
were backing all they knew how; the quartermaster 
reported quietly, 

"The kedge is coming home, sir;" 
round went the capstan. 

"Heave and walk him up, bullies," I said, "and 
we'll back the kedge and trv again." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 123 

Just them the kedge tripped under the stern, the 
ship swung back to port and slowly moved; the 
imperturbable leadsman in the chains remarking 
quietly, 

" She's going astern, sir;" 
and, sure enough, she was. As soon as I had her 
safely clear, I sent down word to the captain, and 
after we were safely anchored he embraced me 
warmly, invited us all down in the cabin and " set 
'em up for the boys." 

THE CAPTAIN'S WOUND. 

The same gunboat was before this time at Vicks- 
burg and was ordered, with others of the squadron, 
to pass the batteries and come down the river. 

The vessels were exposed to a very severe fire and 
suffered considerably, being struck several times. 

One shot struck the carriage of the rifle gun on 
the forecastle, knocked over several of the crew, kill- 
ing one man instantly, and altogether it was pretty 
warm work. About this time the captain was coming 
aft, and was passing the engine room hatch, when a 
shell struck in the water ways and exploded with a 
terrific noise in a chicken coop, distributing some 
twenty chickens and ducks impartially over the ship; 
a good chunk of chicken, or duck, I won't be sure 
which, struck the captain in the back of the neck; 



124: OX A MAN-OI-WAK. 

as the warm blood trickled down his hack, he, suppos- 
ing that he was mortally wounded, or worse, walked 
slowly aft, holding his hands a little out from hi> 
side, as a person would who was afraid his spine 
would drop out, and while reflecting on some appro- 
priate last words, such as "Don't give up the fight," 
or "Bury me in the salt, salt sea" (then a thou- 
sand miles distant), was surprised and pleased when 
the quartermaster, who was wiping off his neck, 
assured him that he was not wounded. The captain 
takes much more pleasure in telling his story to-day, 
than he would if it had turned out differently. 
A few days before this 

THE REBEL RAM ARKANSAS 

suddenly came out of the Yazoo River and passed 
down in broad daylight, right through the squadron 
lying at anchor. It was a clean surprise. She had 
been built up a narrow stream and we had no suspi- 
cion that there was such a vessel. 

As she passed down, every vessel that could bring 
a gun to bear, fired at her, but without effect, as 
she had closed her parts and her heavily iron- 
cladded hull was impervious to their shot. 

It was evident that she would pass quite near tin 
Scioto, and active preparations were made to give 
her a warm reception. The shell was quickly drawn 



OX A MAU-OF-WAK. 



125 



from the eleven-inch gun and a solid shot substituted. 
As the dangerous craft appeared the gun was brought 
to bear, and the breech raised so as to hit her at the 
water line. Now she was right abreast. 

"Lower a little more," 
was the order, and the instant that was to immortal- 
ize the Scioto and shed glory upon the officers, " the 
tide that was in the affairs of gunboats to lead them 
on to fortune," seemed embodied in that instant. 

"Fire," 
was upon the lips of the captain, when a little roll to 
starboard started the shot in the gun, and it rolled 
miserably out at the muzzle, and dropped ingloriously 
into the water. 

The loader, in his haste, had forgotten to put a 
grommet wad over the shot. The commanding offi- 
cer sat down on a spit-box and buried his face in his 
hands; every one looked every way for Sunday, not 
to see the grief stamped upon the countenances of all 
hands, and all hands would have been willing to have 
stamped upon the unhappy loader, had he not pru- 
dently withdrawn himself. I have never learned 
what became of the loader. I suppose he wanders 
to and fro upon the face of the earth a victim to 
" what might have been." 



l'J(> on a MAN-OF-WAK. 

THE FASCINATION OF DESERTION. 

"Captain," said a lady to an old sailor who had 
commanded many ships, " can you tell me why the 
men desert so much? Is it because they are ill- 
treated ? " 

"Well, no, not exactly," replied the man of experi- 
ence. "Sometimes they arc ill-treated, but again, 
they will desert where they are well treated. In fact, 
madam," said he, warming to his subject, "judging 
from the little experience I've had with sailor men 
(he had been going to sea, man and boy, for forty 
years), I really believe that if you freighted a ship 
for heaven, and was obliged to touch in at hell for 
wood and water, half the boat's crew would desert." 

HOW I LOST MY ARM. 

There is a story which is such a good joke on myself, 
that I hasten to tell it before some one else dues. 
I was returning invalided from New Orleans, having 
reached Cairo in the Black Hawk, Admiral Porter'a 
flagship, and had taken the train for Cincinnati. On 
the train was a private soldier, evidently just dis- 
charged, noisy and familiar with his superiors in rank, 
being as good as any colonel or major, etc. I -aw 
that he had been drinking, and I had taken a dislike 
to him from his action in the train. 

On our arrival at Odin we found that we had 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 127 

missed connection and would have to stay all night; 
the beds were all taken and I stood leaning against 
the wall of the office, cogitating as to what I should 
do, being almost helpless, when up came my soldier 
and asked roughly and impertinently, 

" Where did you lose your arm ? " 

I looked him full in the face and in a tone replete 
with dignity (that was my idea) intended to crush 
his impertinence, replied, " I was hit with a club in 
the Mexican war, sir." 

" Oh, you were, eh," he said sneeringly, " it's a 
pity it didn't knock your d — d head off." 

That man, I have reason to believe, still lives. 

IN THE IRISH CHANNEL. 

"Are you sure of the channel, pilot?" asked an 
anxious captain as the ship seemed to be getting 
very near shore. 

"Shure, is it? bedad, captain, darlin', I know every 
rock in ould Ireland," and, as just then the ship 
struck heavily, 

" I'm a Dutchman ef there ain't wan of thim." 



llJJS ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER XIII. 

** He like a foolish pilot, hath shipwreck d 
My vessel gloriously rigged." 

A FRUITLESS CHASE OFF GALVESTON MAN OVERBOARD 

A COLLISION ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER HEAVE 

ROUND. 

THE ROCKET. 

One beautiful evening while lying at anchor on the 
blockade, off Galveston, a rocket was suddenly seen 
to seaward. 

" Stand by to slip," 
called the officer of the deck; 

" Boy, tell the engineer to spread fires," 

" Slip, go ahead, one bell," 
and in five seconds we were standing out to sea, all 
hands excited, and hoping that it would prove to be 
a blockade runner worth a million dollars. As we 
passed the Itasca, her commander called out: 

"What is it, L ?" 

" A rocket to seaward," replied the skipper, " come 
along." 

" All right," 

was the reply, and soon the Itasca was steaming up 
alongside, and was shortly losl to \ Lew on our star- 
board bow. 

The night was clear, with only a light breeze blow* 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 129 

ing, the sea was smooth, the moon shone brightly, 
and as I stood on the ship's rail, leaning on the board- 
ing netting, I thought, well, there is a bright side to 
even blockading; what a lovely night, and how easily 
the little Scioto runs her ten knots an hour; no sea on, 
no motion; if we could only have it this way always. 
Suddenly the cry, 

" MAN OVERBOARD," 

rudely dispelled my contemplation of the beauties of 
the sea, and the bright side of blockading. 

" Stop her," 

"Three bells, a turn back; " 

" Away there, life-boat's crew, clear away the gig," 
I sang out as I jumped, and let go the life-buoy my- 
self. The gig was lowered, the men sliding down 
the falls and tumbling into the boat. 

" Pull right astern and keep the lights in range," 
I said, as, by the captain's orders, the quartermaster 
hoisted a light forward, and the gig plunged into the 
darkness, and was soon far astern. By keeping the 
ship headed as she was when the man fell overboard, 
and hoisting range lights forward and aft, the gig 
would, of course, be able to pull back exactly over 
the track made by the ship, and must pass close to 
the man, if afloat. 



130 ON A MAN-oF-WAR. 

" Who was it ? " 
\v;is the question next asked. 

" Old Rogers, sir, the gunner's mate," answered the 
captain of the forecastle; "he leaned against one of 
the pivot ports, sir, and it dropped down, sir, and he 
went overboard." 

" Yes, sir," said the man in the chains, " and I hove 
the lead-line right between his hands, and he couldn't 
catch it, sir." 

Pretty soon the gig returned with the life-buoy and 
the mournful report: 

" We couldn't see nothing of him, sir." 

" Hook your boat on. Lay aft to the gig's falls," 
was the order, and the men silently hoisted the boat, 
and off went the Scioto again in pursuit of the 
rocket. 

True, she was short a hand, but then you know if 
the rocket proved to be an enemy, and showed fight, 
why we would probably be short more than one. 

INSPIRATION FOR AN ARTIST. 

I often think of that scene, and wish that a painter 
could have stood with me on the rail of that steamer 
— the painting of it would eclipse any marine view 
ever yet exhibited. The gig had just pulled off 
astern, the quartermasters standing on the stern rail 
of the ship burning Coston's signals, illuminating the 
sea for a mile round, and as the bright flame now 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 131 

green, now red, lighted up the eager faces of the 
crew, all crowding and gazing aft, alternately with a 
ghastly pallor and rosy light, the ship rising and fall- 
ing easily on the long swell of the Gulf of Mexico, 
with every thread of rigging standing out bright on 
the dark background of the sky, it was a most beau- 
tiful picture. 

HUNTING IN COUPLES. 

The Scioto and Itasca were ninety-day gun-boats, 
or, as they were called, the 23's; they carried an 
eleven-inch pivot gun amidships, a twenty-pounder 
rifle Parrot on the topgallant forecastle, and four 
howitzers aft. By an arrangement with the Itasca, we 
were to hunt in couples, the Scioto fighting her star- 
board battery, and the Itasca her port battery. By 
this means we could pivot our heavy eleven-inch to 
starboard and carry it athwartships ready for use, 
instead of securing it fore and aft, as Avas the usual 
custom. 

It was the duty of 

THE GUNNEE'S MATE 

to see that the pivot ports were hauled up, and 
stopped only with a yarn, so that in case we had to 
use the gun suddenly, the ports could be instantly 
dropped and the gun fired at once. On this fatal 
evening, lie had secured the ports as usual, reporting 



132 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

the same to the officer of the deck at eight p. m., and 
forgetting what he had done, leaned against one 
of them, which giving way, plunged him into the 
water; being an old man and incumbered in a heavy 
pea-coat, he was unable to keep up. 

He had been in the navy all his life, and used to tell 
how he was on board the brig Soniers when young 
Spencer was hanged for mutiny. 

Well, we ran on until about midnight, and still saw 
nothing to explain the rocket. Up came the Itasca, 
and sneeringly asked: 

" where's tour blockade runner?" 

so we concluded to just keep steerage way on and let 
the watch turn in, all hands having been on deck all 
the evening, and wait for daylight. 

I lay down in my clothes, with my sword and 
revolver in my belt, and went to sleep. It seemed as 
if I had only about closed my eyes, when whir-r-r 
went the rattle, and I climbed on deck in a hurry, I 
tell you. 

The captain met me at the head of the ladder, and 
with a stage whisper, led me forward by the pivot 
gun; I stooped down at his bidding and looked. 

"What do you think of it?" he whispered 
anxiously. 

" Think ? " said I, "it's the Great Eastern." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 133 

Just then along came our old friend, the Itasca; 
we pointed out the steamer, and then both started 
for her, the Itasca on her starboard hand and we on the 
port. Well, the Itasca was the fastest, and darted 
ahead. We approached the steamer cautiously, when, 
suddenly there was a rushing sound from forward, 
and the officer of the forecastle sang out: 

"Hard a-port; quick's your play." 

We jammed down our helm, when whiz went the 
Itasca past us, running about ten knots. She had 
made the circuit of the steamer, and coming back 
we narrowly escaped a collision that would have 
sunk one or both of us. 

A DISAPPOINTMENT. 

Well, our rocket was only a friend, another man- 
of-war, come to join the squadron, and he had con- 
cluded to anchor for the night when we discovered 
him. We all stood in for our anchorage, and passed 
close under the stern of the flagship about 7.30 in the 
morning. The commodore was on deck, and he 
hailed us with: 

" Good morning, captain. What vessel is that ? " 

"The United States steamer B ," was the reply. 

" How did you know she was out there, sir ? " 
"Saw her signals about 8.30 last evening; been 
out after her all night, sir," 
answered our captain. 



134 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

As we steamed slowly over to our anchorage, I 
saw the commodore pulling some hair out of his chin 
whiskers and gesticulating to an unhappy quarter- 
master, and I thanked my stars that I didn't have 
the first watch last night aboard the flagship. 

ON A SINKING GUN-BOAT. 

One bright June day the Scioto entered the South- 
west Pass, Mississippi River, and taking a pilot, 
steamed up the river, bound for New Orleans for 
repairs, and a hospital for me. 

I was lying in a cot just under the ward-room 
hatch outside my state-room. All hands were pleased 
to hear the news of the fall of Vicksburg, and looked 
forward to a pleasant visit to New Orleans after sev- 
eral months' blockading. 

As we steamed steadily along, I became aware that 
we were approaching or meeting a steamer coming 
down the river. I heard the contradictory orders of 
the pilot, 

" Starboard," 

"Port," 

"Steady, 
some confusion, and then an easy grating sound and 
motion exactly like the gentle glide of a boat upon a 
sloping beach. The descending steamer struck us 
just abaft the forechains, cutting into us clear to the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 135 

kelson. Soon I heard the master-at-arms come aft, 
and report, 

" Five feet of water on the berthdeck, sir;" 
some one else cried out, 

"We are sinking." 

The engines were started ahead again, and the ship 
was run ashore; the engineer came up and reported: 

" The water is over the fire-room floor, sir," 
again, 

" The fires are out, sir." 

The engine pegged away a few minutes longer and 
then slowly stopped, and the impassible chief engi- 
neer came up and reported: 

" The engines have stopped, sir." 

(We had a fussy sort of officer at the Naval Acad- 
emy, when I was a midshipman, and the cadets said 
he liked the evening gun because it always reported 
when it went off.) 

The doctor then came down, and had me carried on 
deck in my cot, and put into one of the quarter boats. 
(They were about to lower the boat with the crew in 
her, but I knew that the eye bolts in the bow and 
stern would not hold, and I made the men get out, 
as I feared a plunge in the Mississippi would not help 
me any in my somewhat weak condition.) 

I was put safely on board the steamer which ran 
into us, which turned out to be the Antona, a cap- 



136 OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 

tured blockade runner, now a store-ship. About 
dark a tug came along, and I started for New 
Orleans where I arrived at daylight the next morn- 
ing. 

The Scioto sunk to her spar deck, and the men and 
officers spent the night on deck with the mosquitoes, 
being taken off and sent to New Orleans the next 
day. The mosquitoes are so large on the banks of the 
lower Mississippi, that they may be killed with a 
shot-gun, sometimes. 

I had quite comfortable quarters in the Army Hos- 
pital at New Orleans, it being previously the St. 
James Hotel. 

I received many calls, and presents of delicacies, 
from the ladies of New Orleans, though very Confed- 
erate in their sentiments, and spent three weeks there 
very comfortably. The Confederate ward was just 
above me, and was well filled with wounded " rebs " 
from Port Hudson. As the visitors to the Confeder- 
ates had to pass my door, I made many acquaintances 
among them, and as I have said received considerable 
attention. 

IF YOU CAN ONLY KEEP IT. 

While lying at the New York Navy Yard ono of 
our men, a captain of the foretop, was returning 
from liberty and coming down the wharf, bound for 
the ship; the night being dark, ho ran into a big man 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 137 

in a heavy coat, who was coming in the opposite 
direction. 

"Do you know who you are running into ?" said 
the stranger. 

"No, I don't," said the inebriated son of the sea, 
" and, what's more, I don't care a continental." 

" Well, sir, I am Admiral , and I am in com- 
mand of this yard." 

" Well, admiral," said the unabashed man-of- wars- 
man, while remembrances of the ups and downs in 
his own checkered career on board ship flashed 
through his mind, "that's a mighty good billet if 
you can only keep it." 

HEAVE ROUND. 

An old lady passing along the dock, saw some sail- 
ors on board of one of the lake schooners heaving up 
anchor. The anchor was up to the hawse-hole, but the 
men not noticing it, continued hauling, with a, 

" Yah heave oh." 

" Well ! " said she, " you may ' Yah heave oh ' just 
as much as ye like, but if you pull that crooked iron 
through that little hole in a hurry, I'm mistaken. 



138 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER XIV. 

" The plenteous board, high heap'd with cates divine, 
And o'er the foaming bowl the laughing wine." 

ON THE SOUTH PACIFIC STATION AT CALLAO. 

I happened to be navigator of the Tuscarora on 
the South Pacific Station in 1868, at the time of the 
great earthquake of that year, and think that some 
description might be of some interest to you. 

When the Tuscarora came into the Bay of Callao, 
in latitude twelve degrees south, to report to the 
admiral commanding the squadron, there were sev- 
eral English, French and Peruvian men-of-war, as 
well as three or four of our own ships, lying at 
anchor. 

Permission having been given us by signal to 
anchor, the commander of the Tuscarora, of course, 
called at once on the admiral, to report his arrival and 
receive orders as to the disposition of his ship. Upon 
his return he notified the executive officer that we 
would remain in Callao for a few days, and that the 
officers would be permitted to visit the shore. 

NAVAL COURTESIES. 

As is the custom, the officers of all the different 
ships came on board the next day to call and get 



OX A MAX-OF-WAR. 139 

acquainted, excepting the officers of the English 
frigate Topaz. 

We promptly returned the visits of the Reindeers, 
L'Etoiles, Powhatans, Independeneias and Huascars, 
but never went near the Topaz. Not long after some 
of our English naval friends laughingly told us that 
the Topaz officers said: 

" That they daren't go near those Tuscarora fel- 
lows, you knaw; they's such blawsted swells, you 
knaw; they wear epaulets on Sundays and won't call 
on you unless you call first with your card turned 
down at every corner, you knaw." 

We afterwards got well acquainted with the Topaz 
officers, and found them very jolly and pleasant fel- 
lows, indeed. 

The climate of Callao seemed to me about the 
same all the year round, but the natives called the 
seasons by different names as do we. I never knew, 
however, after being on the station two and a half 
years, whether winter was in June or November. 

I have a faint recollection of asking for grapes 
once in June, and being laughed at; being told that 
we had oranges in June but grapes in January. 

I was very much astonished on going into a barber 
shop one day in Lima to get shaved, at being told by 
the barber, after shaving me, that I must get up and 
wash my own face. 



140 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

In the shops you are expected to beat down the 
price always, until you are gravely assured that " la 
ultima" is reached, when you calmly pay the price 
and go. 

I promptly informed one diamond seller that I was 
a North American, whereupon he apologized and 
gave me the lowest price at once. 

One day, wishing a door-key made, I asked in Span- 
ish, 

" When can I have it ? " 

The smith answered, 

"Oh, Pasada Mafiana ! " (Day after to-morrow.) 

Noting his English accent, I said: 

"I am an American, sir, when can I have the key ? " 

"I beg your pardon, sir," said the Englishman, "I 
thought you were a Dago. Come in half an hour." 

WARD-ROOM MESS. 

There were twenty of us in the ward-room mess, 
the executive officer sitting at the forward end of the 
table, and the paymaster, who was the caterer, sit- 
ting at the after end, the line officers, that is lieuten- 
ants and masters, on the starboard side nearest their 
state-rooms, the staff officers, engineers, doctors and 
paymasters, on the port side. We had a very jolly 
mess, I assure you. Most of us had been on foreign 
stations, and we could relate various experiences and 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 141 

tell stories culled from every quarter of the world. 
We had lunch at 8 a. m., consisting of coffee, choc- 
olate, toast, oranges, bananas, ripe figs, peeled and 
eaten with cream and powdered sugar; chiri-moyas, 
sweet, ripe and custardy, which you ate with a spoon, 
holding the fruit in your left hand; grenadillas, 
which left a seed wedged in between every tooth in 
your head, delicious pine-apples from Guayaquil 
(Y-a-keel), and grapes from Valparaiso (Yale of Par- 
adise). 

By 11 o'clock a. m., the most of the drills and exer- 
cises being over, we had a regular meat breakfast, 
" same as Melican man." At five p. m. we had a din- 
ner of seven or eight courses, flanked with appro- 
priate wines, and finished with a delightful Havana 
cigar. 

We generally purchased wines for the wine mess, 
which is distinct from the ward-room mess, in Pan- 
ama, which is a free port, and where the best could 
be bought, free of duty, and very cheap, and cigars 
in the same way. 

There is a vague idea, prevalent in the minds of 
visitors on board a man-of-war, that the government 
pays for the entertainment furnished so freely to 
them; that there is a fund expressly provided by a 
benevolent Congress to buy whisky and cigars for the 
men, and light wines and biscuits for the women, 
when the Americans visit one of their ships. 



142 ON A MAN-oI-WAli. 

It is a mistake; give the officer who entertains you 
credit for his hospitality, for he pays for what he 
orders, himself; and, I can assure you, from actual 
experience, that hospitality as it is freely exercised 
on board ship, is costly, and forms a very consider- 
able item in the expense account of a naval officer. 
In rare cases table money is allowed admirals for 
entertainment of royalty abroad, but the case is so 
rare that I do not know personally of a single one. 

When a ship fits out for sea, 

EACH MESS ELECTS A CATERER, 

who takes charge of the mess matters and accounts; 
a vote is taken and generally results in assessing $100 
apiece, outfit for crockery, table linen, etc., and $30 
a month in advance each for mess bill. 

The government furnishes servants, fires and lights 
only. The midshipmen mess by themselves, in the 
starboard steerage, and live in proportion to their 
means. 

Frequently a midshipman dines in the cabin or in 
the ward-room by invitation; eats his own dinner 
religiously in the steerage first, borrows all the clothes 
of his messmates that he wants, oftener without per- 
mission than with, and enlarges at sapper for the 
benefit of his envious shipmates upon what he had 
for dinner in the cabin. The wine ! 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 143 

" Jim, did you get any of that Madeira, when you 
dined in the cabin, that the skipper brought over him- 
self?" 

"I had three glasses and was going for another 
when old Beeswax asked me if the ship wasn't swing- 
ing, and I went on deck to tell the officer of the deck 
to tend her and not foul the anchor." 

" THE JOLLY TUSCARORAS." 

" He could on either side dispute, 
Confute, change hands, and still confute." 

Sometimes topics would fail at table, and every 
occasion was eagerly sought that would make talk; 
if a fellow said a thing was all colors, black, red, 
white, etc., he was quickly taken up by some argu- 
mentative cuss, who offered to bet him $5 that black 
was not a color, or he would take the opposite side 
and prove that black and white were colors. 

It got so that they said aboard the other ships that 
an officer of the Tuscarora never came out of his 
state-room to breakfast and ventured the remark that 
it was a pleasant day, without first laying a $5 bill 
down by his plate in case it should be disjmted. 

Some visitors were on board one day and were 
admiring 

THE NEATNESS OF THE SHIP, 

the whiteness of the decks, and so forth, and walk- 
ing forward were attracted by the extraordinary care 



144 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

shown in the appearance of the pivot gun; the car- 
riage was pure white, the bolts were jet black; the 
gun, itself, coated with a lacquer of bees wax and 
blacking, was laboriously polished with corks until 
you could see your face in it. One of the ladies 
admiringly passed her delicately gloved hand over 
the smooth surface of the gun, and exclaimed, 

" How glossy and smooth it is," 
to the great disgust of the old quarter gunner, who 
muttered as the party turned away, 

" They ain't satisfied to look at at a gun without 
sticking their d d dirty paws all over it." 

THE MIDSHIPMEN 

generally live like fighting cocks in port, and, from 
dire necessity, on their rations when at sea, and fre- 
quent cruises are very necessary to compel the 
improvident youngsters to save enough money at sea, 
where they can't spend it, to carry them decently 
through while in port. It is such a nuisance for a 
midshipman to have to pay out good money for his 
daily bread, that the marrying of a girl who can pay 
her own mess bill, is the universal foundation stone in 
the Spanish castle of every incipient Nelson in the 
service. 

There is an idea that a naval officer, in addition to 
his pay, gets a certain number of rations, which com- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 145 

muted, forms a handsome sum of money. This is 
not true. Each officer, petty officer, seaman, ordinary 
seaman, landsman or marine, receives one ration 
worth twenty-five cents per day, and in default of the 
spirit ration, which used to be issued (a tot of 
grog) twice a 3aiy, he receives five cents. 

" For they've iais.; I his pay live cents a day. 
But stopped his grcg forever." 

Officers generally commute their ration, drawing 
the thirty cents a day in cash. The caterer of the 
mess is allowed to draw from the paymaster double 
the amount of the ration of any article allowed, by 
paying for it, provided that the men are not 
deprived thereby. 

A GENIAL OLD COMMODORE. 

One of our vessels lay at anchor in the Bay of 
Naples; the old commodore had quarantined every 
midshipman to the ship for some infraction of dis- 
cipline. They hadn't their copy of the watch quar- 
ter and station bill, or the log written up, or they 
had neglected to work their " day's work " (of " dead 
reckoning"), perhaps; anyway the old scalawag had 
said that not a midshipman should leave the ship. 
Just as the 3 o'clock boat was called away a few of 
the youngsters were disconsolately walking up and 
down the port side of the quarter-deck, or peering 
10 



140 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

over the gangway, longingly looking ashore, trying 
to "see Naples and not die," and furtively watching 

the old commodore as he paced up and down the 
deck. Suddenly he stopped, and looking at the 
victims, sternly said: 

" I suppose you young gentlemen would like to go 
ashore, wouldn't ye ? " 

"Yes, sir; oh! yes, sir," 
was the eager and unanimous response. 

" Well, ye — a — ca-an't — go," 
the old cuss drawled out, and stumped off inl<> the 
cabin. 

WIND IT, JACK. 

I never saw a sailor that claimed to have any stock 
in babies, but they tell of one who came up to the 
font to have his baby baptized, and, of course pre- 
sented the infant, feet foremost. 

" The other way," 
said the minister benignly, and Jack accordingly 
turned the infant upside down. 

" Excuse me," said the clergyman, " I mean the 
other way." 

So back came the embryo foretopman to the first 
position again, to the evident discouragement of all 
hands. 

* " Wind it, Jack," said the nautical assistant, and. 

When a ship is Bwung half way rouml, or bow for stem, the opera* 
tion is termed winding ship. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 147 

with an " Aye, aye, sir," Jack promptly turned the 
baby " end for end," and it was duly christened 
head first. 

I started out to tell of the great earthquake, I 
believe, and I see that I have wound up with a littlo 
one. Well, perhaps, I may get to it in another 
letter. 



14b ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER XV. 

Imprison'd fires, in the close dungeons pent, 
Roar to get loose, and struggle for a vent: 
Eating their way, and undermining all, 
Till with a mighty burst whole mountains fall." 

ON THE SOUTH PACIFIC STATION THE EARTHQUAKE. 

This is really about the earthquake this time, 
though I am well aware that it will not prove as 
interesting to you as it was to the Peruvians. 

One beautiful afternoon in the year 1808 — it don't 
make any material difference what time of year it 
was, as only an expert could tell the difference be- 
tween summer and winter — the P. S. N. Co.'s steamer 
Santiago, bound south from Panama, came into the 
open harbor of Ohala, Peru, and anchored ; in an 
instant the custom-house officers were along side and 
on board, with several of the prominent merchants, 
all eager for the letters and news from the north, this 
line of steamers being their only channel of commu- 
nication with the outside world, shut in as they were, 
by the lofty and almost impassable Andes mountains, 
whose snow-clad peaks towered above them, reaching 
an altitude of 20,000 feet, within thirty miles of the 
town. 

Suddenly the confused babel of cries from the 
balsas, and innumerable small boats surrounding the 
steamer, united in a terrified shout of 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 149 

" TERRE MOTO," " TERRE MOTO, 

and away they pulled toward the shore. There were 
one or two North American ladies on board, who, 
leaning idly over the rail, were curiously watching 
the, to them, novel scene. They heard the shout and 
were startled by seeing the boats suddenly pull fran- 
tically toward the shore. What could " terre moto " 
mean ; the passengers on board wrung their hands 
and threw themselves face downwards on the decks, 
moaning and crying as if they expected instant 
death. On shore a cloud of dust enveloped the 
town ; the low adobe houses rocked, swayed and fell, 
the dry pulverized earth mounting in a cloud heaven- 
ward; the merchants from Chala, who had come on 
board, begged to be put on shore, but the captain 
refused to man a boat. Suddenly the sea rose, 

" El mar;" 
shrieked the frightened wretches, groveling on the 
decks in a very paroxysm of terror. 

" JVbmbre de Dios ! El mar" 

The sea rose between the ship and shore, and swept, 
in a wave from forty to fifty feet in height, over the 
town, rising and falling with great rapidity, marking 
on the dry, sandy cliff the height of the water, far 
above the highest house; and the town, the pretty 
little Town of 

CHALA WAS DESTROYED. 



150 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Back and forth sped the vessels lying, or which had 
been lying, at anchor ; some went down ; some were 
driven out to sea ; some whirled round like tops, 
while the iron steamer trembled and rattled as if she 
were striking on the bottom of the bay. 

One vessel quite near, that seemed to be in a 
whirlpool, she swung round so rapidly, had three 
persons on board, who rent the air with their cries; 
volunteers being called for, a boat was quickly 
manned from the Santiago, and the men, flinging 
themselves into the water, were rescued and brought 
on board. 

By this time the water was so disturbed that the 
captain of the Santiago determined to seek safety 
farther off, and not a moment too soon; for just then 
the steamer tugged violently and parted her anchor 
chain, and away she went seaward, under full steam, 
and on top of a receding wave that left bare the spot 
where she had been anchored two minutes before in 
five fathoms of water. 

It was a narrow escape, for if she had touched the 
bottom, the next wave would have swept over her, 
and the details of the earthquake, so far as the San- 
tiago could furnish, would have been, like the town 
of Chala, lost. 

There were some passengers on board for Chala, 
besides the merchants, who could not get ashore, and 



ON A MANOF-WAJR. * 151 

they were nearly distracted ; but the captain would 
not yield, and kept on his course toward Arica, some 
200 miles to the southward. 

ARICA 

was a very pretty little town about 400 miles south- 
east from Callao, and situated in the old bed of a 
river, with lofty mountains on each side; a railroad 
ran along near the sea, back round the mountain, 
some thirty miles to the town of Tacna. There was 
a mole, or wharf, a custom-house and a number of 
pretty houses, with a grove of olive trees, which 
maintained a bare existence, being watered carefully 
and tended as a curiosity almost, by the inhabitants 
of this otherwise dreary, dreary coast town. The 
United States steamer Wateree, a double-ender, and 
the store ship Fredonia, were stationed here ; and, 
by-the-by, orders detaching me from the Tuscarora, 
and ordering me as executive officer of the Fredonia 
were on board that very steamer, the Santiago, so 
Arica promised to be a very interesting place to me, 
I assure you ; and, too, there were passengers on 
board for Arica, who asked piteously of the captain 
if he really thought that the earthquake had reached 
as far south as Arica; others, who had left Callao in 
the steamer, were equally anxious about their homes, 
as they were speeding away from them ; for they 



152 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

must go on; there was no stopping, and no place to 
stop. 

Well, the steamer came in sight of the town about 
eight o'clock in the morning ; there was the town, 
certainly, but where was the shipping ; where was 
the Fredonia ; where the custom-house ; what had 
become of the olive grove and several large trees for 
which this little place was noted ? 

Halloo! there's the Wateree about 400 yards up on 
the beach. She seems to be all right, with her boats 
hoisted, her flag flying, but what is she doing so far 
from the water ? 

Soon a boat pulled off to the steamer and brought 

THE NEWS OF THE EARTHQUAKE 

in Arica. The town was destroyed ; the Fredonia 
went down with all hands ; the merchant ship Cha- 
narcillo lay on the beach with her chain wrapped 
thrice around her, showing that she had been rolled 
over and over by the waves ; that ship, there, on the 
beach with her back broken, is the Peruvian corvette 
America. The Wateree is up there, back of where 
was once the olive grove, all right and no one hurt, 
and so on with a long list of casualties. 

"Have you any water to spare captain; the distill- 
ing works on the beach were destroyed, and wc have 
no water. There is enough in the little stream to 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 153 

quench the thirst of the people left, but there is great 
suffering, notwithstanding." 

The Santiago went on from port to port, listening 
to stories which were a mere repetition of what had 
gone before, until we struck Valparaiso, where a 
large number of vessels lay at anchor in the deep 
waters of the bay. Here they had had no earthquake, 
no tidal wave, beyond a trifling rise in the water, and 
were astonished to hear the story brought by the 
Santiago, of the ruins and desolation she had wit- 
nessed. 

The Tuscarora was at once ordered to Arica with 
supplies for the suffering people, and we sailed in 
three or four days for that port. 

On arriving at Arica I went on shore to see the 
ruin that bad been caused by the earthquake. I can 
better describe the appearance if you can imagine 
the scene of some great conflagration, 

LIKE CHICAGO AFTER THE FIRE, 

without the mark of fire itself. The buildings had 
been crushed, and parts of them washed into the sea 
by the waves. The people had erected sheds, tents, 
and all sorts of contrivances to keep off the sun 
(there's no rain in Peru to keep off), and the destitu- 
tion and suffering were very great. As we landed 
on the beach and started up toward the town two 



154 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

nice-looking girls, black as the ace of spades, passed 
us, and after the custom of the country said, 

" Buenas diets, caballeros." 

" Buenas dias, senoritax," 
we gravely responded, raising our caps, and kept on 
our way, half expecting to hear a " yah, yah," such 
as we might have heard in our own country. 

The English consul, an old resident of Arica, 
described to me the fearful day substantially as fol- 
lows : 

"I felt the rocking of the house, and thought, per 
haps it was only a temblor (a word corresponding to 
shake and not dangerous), but as it continued vio- 
lently, I was convinced that it was an earthquake, 
terre moto, and, calling my family to me, we gained 
the street. The nurse, with my youngest child, 
started for the mole, but I compelled her to come 
back with me, and we turned to the mountain. Just 
then, the earth opened beneath my feet and warm 
water came up ankle deep, where before it was dry 
sand. Sulphurous vapors filled the air, and what 
with the dense clouds of dust caused by the falling 
of houses, it was impossible to see in any direction, 
and almost suffocating. 

** ' With hue like that when some great painter dips 
His pencil in the gloom of earthquake and eclipse.' 

"We gained, however, the principal street leading 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 155 

up from the sea, and staggered along towards the 
mountains. 

"the ground shook and rolled 
so that we reeled and staggered like drunken men. 
On either hand we saw people crushed beneath their 
houses, groaning piteously and calling on their saints 
to deliver them. Recognizing me they called out, 

" ' 0, Senor Consul, ayudame por Vamor de Dios> 
y de todos los santos, salve me ! ' 

" But I could not aid them; I had enough to help, 
and so passed on. Gaining that hill yonder, I turned 
and looked towards the sea. There were hundreds of 
people crowded on to the mole, when suddenly there 
was a cry of 

" ' El mar, El mar ' (the sea, the sea), 
and I saw the water recede, leaving the ground bare 
for a mile from the beach. The Fredonia store-ship 
had four anchors down, moored head and stern, and 
when the water went out it left her high and dry, 
heeled over to starboard. The Wateree went sea- 
wards at about twenty miles an hour, considerably 
faster than she ever went before, I guess, or will ever 
again. Several of the merchant ships got foul of 
each other, and everything on the water seemed 
endowed with life. 

" As we stood there the sea returned in a wall of 
water, over forty feet in height, bringing the ships 



156 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

in with it. The water struck the Fredonia and passed 
over her ; on it came, and broke over the custom- 
house. Again the sea receded, but the Fredonia had 
disappeared, crushed beneath that wall of water 
which had licked up all of that vast crowd on the 
mole. 

"Again and again, until nine times, the sea came in 
and out, each time the wave a little smaller, until it 
finally ceased. The America you see on the beach ; 
the Chanarcillo as well, with her chain wrapped tine* 
times round her ; the Wateree, too, 400 yards from 
high-water mark, is 

THE ONLY VESSEL UNINJURED. 

" The rest have all gone down. 

" The wife of the executive officer of the Fredonia 
went down in her. Lieut. J.'s wife is dead. Her 
husband carried her in his arms to the hill, and found 
that she was dead, killed by the fall of the keystone 
of the arch of the house ; the town, as you see, is 
destroyed ; the people are starving ; they cannot get 
away, as they have no money to pay their fare on the 
steamer, and there is no other way. 

"The railroad track was torn up for miles; the 
heavy iron columns of the custom-house were twisted, 
broken and carried two miles from their original 
position ; the old grave-yard, the other side of the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAfi. 157 

bluff, was laid bare, and hundreds of corpses (mum- 
mies, Kilpatrick called them), exposed to view, curi- 
ous old Indian pipes and relics being scattered 
about." 

I went on board the Wateree and found her quietly 
resting at the foot of a hill, with her anchor down 
and a little astern of her, showing that at some period 
of her ;flight she had been farther in shore than where 
she now rested. Had she grounded then, on the hill, 
instead of at the foot of it, it is more than probable 
that she would have rolled down the hill and killed 
all hands on board. While on board, nearly every 
day the ship would shake from stem to stern, and the 
iron stack would rattle with the movement of the 
temblor, and we would run on deck to see the fright- 
ened people hurrying from their temporary homes in 
fear and dread of another terre moto. 

We rode out one day on mule back to the English 
consul's new residence, some three miles from Arica. 
The road was over a hot, dusty, sandy incline, up the 
mountain, the crust sounding hollow under our ani- 
mals' hoofs. The wife of the consul, a bright little 
woman, received us very cordially and gave us a glass 
of Pisco sherry. 

She was much amused, when in answer to her 
question I said, 

" Mi muela (back tooth) no anda bien" instead of 
Mulct (mule). 



158 ON A MM-OF-WAK. 

On our return, as we rode along, smoking, a big 
negress stopped us with the salutation, 

" JDeme un puro, caballeros" (give me an Havana 
segar, gentlemen), 

and walked off highly delighted, smoking a segar 
four inches lon<;\ 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 159 



LETTER XVI. 

" In sheets of rain the sky descends, 
And ocean swelTd with waters upward tends; 
One rising, falling one, the heavens and sea 
Meet at their confines in the middle way." 

FROM CALLAO TO PANAMA IN 1869 THE TRADE-WINDS 

AND THE COAST CURRENTS A NIGHT ON DECK IN 

THE BAY OF PANAMA AN UNHERALDED STORM 

STEERING BY INFERENCE PAST THE ROCKS IN 

SAFETY A CLEAR SKY AND A GOOD ANCHORAGE — 

THE TIDES IN THE BAY OF PANAMA THE RETURN 

TO CALLAO — THE QUARTER-DECK A BULLY STORY 

PAT MURPHY'S ROOSTER. 

One warm day in June, 1869, the United States 
ship Onward, to which I was attached, was ordered 
to proceed from Callao, Peru, to Panama for stores 
for the squadron. The Onward was a half clipper, 
and sailed beautifully. We got under weigh, and 

WITH EVERYTHING SET, ALOW AND ALOFT, 

and with stun-sails both sides, we ran swiftly along 
to the northward, borne on by the Peruvian current 
and trade-wind toward Panama. 

The trade-wind blows throughout the year, varying 
from south to south southeast, freshening, at Callao, 
with unvarying regularity, at 4 p. m. each day. 



100 ON A MAN-UK- WAK. 

The Peruvian and Mexican coast currents corre- 
spond somewhat to the gulf stream of the Atlantic, 
flowing northward from Chili to Oregon, at the rate 
of about two knots per hour, tempering materially 
the climate of the countries past which they flow. 

In about a week, 

WE ENTERED THE BAY OP PANAMA, 

at sunset, and hoped to reach our anchorage the same 
evening. 

As we proceeded, however, the wind continuing to 
haul, we took in the studding-sails and braced the 
yards sharp up. It was now about two bells (9 p. m.), 
and being unable to weather the point we tacked and 
stood off shore. 

The wind now almost died away, and we made only 
about three knots an hour, so I took the deck, and 
with the navigator, we tacked back and forth all 
night. We had a small crew, and had to work all 
hands all night, but as they lay down at their stations 
and slept until called up by the order "ready about," 
they did not suffer much. As for Charley C, the 
navigator, and myself, we drank brandy and water 
and smoked Havanas all night under a clear tropical 
sky, rousing the men up about every two hours to 
tack ship. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAJi. 1 01 

A PREMONITION. 

At 8 o'clock a. m. the officer of the forenoon watch 
took the deck and I went down for some coif ee ; for 
some reason, however, I felt restless and uneasy, and 
soon came up on deck again, allowing the officer to 
go below. The sea was like glass; the ship had every 
sail set, to royal and flying jib, but lay motionless on 
the water, " as idle as a painted ship upon a painted . 
ocean." Two or three miles away was Ship Rock, 
while beyond was the harbor of Panama, with its 
long lines of reefs, sharp as knives, as an unlucky 
vessel soon finds when she strikes one of them. 

I looked around the horizon, but saw nothing un- 
usual save a darkish cloud off the quarter. From 
habit I looked at the compass, and noted that the 
Columbian man-of-war Bolivar bore N". N. W. from 
us, about six miles distant. 

SUDDENLY THEEE WAS A BUSHING SOUND, 

and the storm was almost upon us. 

" Top-gallant and royal clewlines ! Flying jib down 
haul ! " I shouted; " quick's your play." 

"In royal and top-gallant sails; down flying jib I" 

" Fore and main clew garnets and buntlines." 

" Haul taut; up courses ! " 

"Hands by the topsail halliards ! " 

"A hand in the chains." 



H)2 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

The ship was now bounding along about twelve 
miles an hour; the rain fell in torrents, so that you 
could not see the bow of the ship; half an hour would 
bring us on the reefs; you could tell nothing from a 
chart, as we were in a land-locked harbor. 

" Keep her N. N. W., quartermaster," I said, as I 
remembered the bearing of the Bolivar. 

" N. N. W ? " asked the navigator, doubtingly, as 
he ran up the hatch. 

" Are you sure ? " 

" Yes," I said, " but you had better keep a sharp 
lookout for Ship Rock on the port bow, unless you 
want to swim for it." 

" What water ? " I asked the man in the chains at 
the lead, who looked as if a cascade had exploded 
over him. 

" Can't get bottom, sir; going too fast," he replied. 

" It's somewhat important to know, Burns," I said, 
cheerfully, " and we're going faster than I really wish 
to myself." 

" There she is," came from a score of eager throats, 
as Ship Rock loomed up majestically through the 
driving rain, on our port bow, and I knew that 

WE WERE HEADED ALL RIGIIT. 

We could see by the change in the color that we 
were shoaling our water rapidly, so I clewed up the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 163 

topsails and let her run on, driven only by the force 
of the wind on the sails, as they hung ready for 
furling. 

" A ship which hath struck sail doth run 
By force of that force which before it won." 

After running for about ten minutes this way, the 
speed of the ship was so much reduced, that the 
leadsman got bottom, and called out: 

"By the mark, five." 

" The lead once more the seaman flung, 
And to the watchful pilot sung— 

' Quarter less — five.' H 

And I tell you we were glad to hear from him, too. 
Judging that we were about where we ought to be, 
and where we "would do the most good," we put 
down the helm, and as she came up head to the wind, 
and commenced to go astern, down went the star- 
board anchor. The rain stopped instantly, 

THE SKT CLEARED AT ONCE, 

the sun came out red-hot, and we were in as nice a 
berth as if we had taken all day to pick it out. But 
I don't want to do so any more. Talk about turning 
gray in a single night ! Some of us turned green in 
half an hour, and haven't quite recovered from it 
yet. 

Well, about 4 o'clock, after furling sail and seeing 
all snug, the captain, who had been very sick in the 



164 ON A MAN -OF- WAR. 

cabin during the whole trip, and myself, took the gig 
and pulled ashore to Panama, distant about three and 
a half miles. The sun was very hot, bat the men 
were in cool white, and, with the awning spread, 
pulled leisurely in to the landing. 

A TBBMENDOUS TIDE. 

All of the large steamers and shipping are obliged 
to anchor about three and a half miles from Panama, 
out in the bay, on account of the tremendous rise and 
fall of the tide — twenty-five feet. At \pw tide you 
can walk out on the reefs a mile and a half from the 
wharf, where at high tide, there is fifteen feet of 
water. It is very frequent for captains to warp their 
vessels into a suitable place, shoring them up as the 
tide falls, until, left high and dry, such cleaning <-r 
repairs are made as can be done during the six hours 
of low water. 

Panama is a free port, and we took occasion to lay 
in all sorts of stores, wines, cigars and liquors, which 
were very cheap indeed, there being no duty on them. 
We unwillingly laid in a lew scorpions and centi- 
pedes also, which had concealed themselves in the old 
stores when at the store-house. They did not prove 
dangerous, however, as they 1"><- their p<>U«>?i on 
board ship, where they have no poisonous thing t«» 
feed upon. In Panama, however, we always tO< k 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 105 

the precaution to look into our slippers before put- 
ting them on in the morning to be sure that there 
were no centipedes in them. 

OFF TO THE TURTLE ISLANDS. 

After spending a few weeks at Panama, we got 
under weigh and stood out to sea to the westward, 
close hauled on the port tack. 

The wind blew steadily from the south by west, and 
we ran along west by south for several hundred miles, 
passing close to the Gallapagos, or Turtle Islands, 
which lie just on the equator and west of Ecuador. 

Large numbers of turtles are shipped from these 
islands to all parts of the world, as they are very 
cheap, and require no food, being stowed in the hold 
of the ship, without particular attention, for four or 
five months. 

FIFTY-THREE DAYS CLOSE HAULED ON THE PORT TACK. 

As we stood off shore, the wind veered gradually 
to the eastward, and when about 2,200 miles from the 
coast, we were running nearly due south. We ran on, 
still on the port tack, "full and by," until we sighted 
Easter Island, a lone island in the Pacific seldom vis- 
ited by vessels. 

Here we struck the trades, and ran in due east past 
the Island of Juan Fernandez toward Valparaiso, in 
33 south latitude, and getting the wind dead aft came 
a-flyinff with studding-sails set both sides. 



166 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

We arrived at Callao, which is in a straight line 
from Panama, distant 1,300 miles, in sixty-three days, 
having sailed 7,400 miles and having been close- 
hauled on the port tack fifty-three days. 

THE QUARTER-DECK. 

The quarter-deck of a man-of-war is the snored 
place of the ship. No one crosses it without saluting 
by raising his cap; no one laughs, talks, or whistles 
on the quarter-deck; from the quarter-deck, are read 
all general orders, and the articles of war. Every 
Sunday divine service is read on the quarter-deck. 

Whenever an officer, however high his rank, comes 
on deck, he salutes the deck; and the officer of the 
watch is required to invariably return the salute. 

The starboard side of the quarter-deck, in port, or 
the weather side, at sea, is to be kept clear, and no 
one save the commander, the executive, and the offi- 
cer of the watch, is permitted to use that side unless 
his duty compels it. 

It is the one sacred spot on board ship that cannot 

be profaned with impunity. 
P 

SIZE OF SAILS. 

I was asked the other day about how large was the 
largest sail on board the Sabine. 

The length of the main-yard of the frigate Sabine, 
which was only a second rate, was 105 feet, and the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 167 

drop of her mainsail 65 feet, taking 14,000 yards of 
canvas for an entire single suit of her sails. If her 
main-yard was laid on top of the Bank Block, Gris- 
wold street, Detroit, it would reach nearly over the 
Seitz Block and the foot of the sail would drag on 
the side walk. 

EASE OFF YOUR SPANKER SHEET. 

A sailor was coming across a meadow one day 
when a bull took after him, of course, he made for 
the fence; when almost there, he looked back over his 
shoulder, and seeing that the bull was close aboard, 
with his tail sticking straight out behind him, he 
shouted: 

" Ease off your spanker sheet, and port your helm 
or you'll be afoul of me." 

THAT INFERNAL OLD ROOSTER. 

One dark night, about midnight, one of our block- 
ading gunboats, off Mobile, commanded by a jolly 
commander, since in command of the Michigan on 
the lakes, was prowling around, seeking something to 
devour, when suddenly a cock was heard to crow to 
seaward. 

In an instant, every man was on the alert, the 
quick-witted sailor knew that cocks didn't crow at 
sea, unless there was some vessel in that direction, to 
crow from, and they all knew, from their sharpened 



168 <>X A MA.\-u]'-\VAR. 

appetites, that it couldn't be from a blockader, as 

every old rooster in the squadron had been eaten up 
long ago. It was so dark that you could not see a 
ship's length away, so, carefully shrouding every light 
that could betray them, the steamer's head was turned 
in the direction of the friendly warning, and Bhe 
stole quietly seaward. 

In a very few minutes, the black hull of a vessel 
loomed up out of the darkness, and the boats being 
softly lowered, they took possession of the prize, a 
blockade runner, almost before the captured 
was aware of it. 

On going into the cabin of the prize, Capt. J. 
found that it was commanded by Pat Murphy, an old 
classmate of his, who had thought it his duty to ally 
his fortunes with those of his southern State. 

"Look here, Jim," said Murphy, after a glass of 
wine had mellowed up matters a little, "how in the 

d 1 did you know I was here, I couldn't see you 

at all." 

Jim laughed and napping his arms, 

" Cock-a-doodle doo," said he. 

"That infernal old rooster!" said Murphy, "I had 
given orders to cut his head off to-morrow." 

"I am awful glad you put it oft", Pat." said J., 
"here's to his health; he's worth ten thousand dollars 
to me." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 10^ 



LETTER XVII. 

" Oh, I am a cook and a captain bold, 
And the mate of the Nancy brig, 
And abo*sun tight, and a miclshipmite, 
And the crew of the captain's gig." 

SATURDAY AND ITS DELIGHTS THE NAVAL OFFICERS 

OF THREE NATIONS AT THE PRESIDENT'S BALL IX 

SANTIAGO THEIR SUCCESS AT MAKING THEMSELVES 

UNDERSTOOD HOW THET SECURED PARTNERS, AND 

HOW THET ENJOYED THE DANCING AN EVENING 

ON BOARD SHIP SAILOR BALLADS. 

It was Saturday morning, and every one knows 
what Saturday is on board a man-of-war. Thursday 
we had scrubbed hammocks, and had dodged under 
the dripping strips of canvas, stopped on the ham- 
mock gantline, in a rainbow fore and aft the ship, 
from stem to stern. Friday morning the men had 
scrubbed and washed clothes, and the results had 
been dripping from the sea-lines between the main 
and mizzen rigging for two hours, over the port side 
of the quarter-deck, and now, Saturday, a general 
cleaning day was upon us. 

HOLY-STONES AND PRAYER-BOOKS. 

The men were all busy getting up the heavy holy- 
stones and sand, with the smaller ones, called prayer- 



170 ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 

books, because the operators have to go on their 
hands and knees with them to scour out the many 
corners on board ship. " A hand from each part of 
the ship " was on the catamaran,* armed with brooms, 
brushes, sand and canvas, scrubbing copper; the 
battery was cast loose and run in and out as required, 
to enable the men to drag the heavy holy-stones back 
and forth over the decks, where the guns had been. 
The chain pumps were going; buckets of water 
splashing all over the decks; quarter gunners scrub- 
bing their sponge and rammer handles; quarter- 
masters, with a pile of bridge gratings to holy-stone; 
the officer of the deck, barefooted, with his breeches 
rolled up to his knees, was pattering about, while the 
executive officer, in similar attire, was making him- 
self disagreeable by being everywhere, above and 
below, pointing out new worlds to conquer, and see- 
ing everything. 

Well, as I was only the navigator and could not 
scrub my sextants or wash out my chronometers very 
well, I said smilingly, to the envious and bedraggled 
executive officer, my superior, 

" I will go on shore, with your permission," and 
accordingly I got on shore as soon as I could, and 

* The term "catamaran" as used here means a small raft upon 
which the sailor stands when scrubbing the copper on the exterior of 
the ship. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 171 

returned in the afternoon, to find everything clean 
and neat, scrubbed inside and out, the guns secure, 
the running rigging flemished down, and the men sit- 
ting quietly about the decks with their ditty bags 
alongside, some one sewing on a blue shirt, another 
making a cap, while a third was busy on some intri- 
cate embroidery in various colors, representing, gen- 
erally, a scarlet ship with blue guns and yellow masts, 
proudly careening under full sail, over a bright green 
sea, spotted here and there with a white cap. 

Forward, on the gun-deck, the paymaster's steward, 
and his assistant, the Jack of the Dust, were serving 
out small stores, and one was drawing pots and pans, 
another soap and tobacco, while a slender little fellow 
was struggling with a No. 1 flannel shirt, or a pair of 
satinet trowsers a mile too big for him, recalling the 
frequent simile on board ship of, 

" Oh, yes; it fits him like a purser's shirt on a 
handspike." 

THEY CAN'T PUT YOU IN IKONS FOR THAT. 

Away forward on the gun-deck, near the manger, 
and by the heel of the bowsprit, sits a sullen and dis- 
contented landsman. He is in the brig for punish- 
ment, with hands and feet in irons. A sympathetic 
shipmate, on the port side, finds time, when the sen- 
try is not looking, to ask: 



172 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

"What are you in for, Bill?" 

" Why, only for spitting on deck and sassinir the 
captain of the top," 

is the answer of the aggrieved aspirant for naval 
honors. 

"Pshaw! they can't put you in irons for that," 
said the sympathizer. 

" Oh, they can't, eh ? " witheringly replied the pris- 
oner; "well, what in thunder am I doing here?" 

A PROTEST. 

Apropos of the above, the late Capt. S u<e<l to 

tell a story himself, illustrating tin- power of 1 1n- 
commanding officer in the old time to do pretty much 
as he pleased whether right or wrong. He was a 
lieutenant on board the old North Carolina, and was 
somewhat startled one day by an order -cut from tin- 
cabin for Lieut. S to take the laiuich and g< i to 

Sandy Hook for sand. Up he jumped and storming 
on deck, sent in his name, by the orderly, to see the 
captain. 

" Good morning, Mr. S ," said the old skipper. 

"Ahem! Good morning, captain. I just received 
an order from you to go for sand, sir, and thinking 
that there was some mistake, I came up to ask — ah." 

"There's no mistake, Mr. S . You are to take 

the launch and go for sand." 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 173 

" But, sir, I am a lieutenant, sir. It has always 
been the duty of a midshipman or a past-midshipman, 
sir, to go for sand." 

" You will take the launch, sir, and go for sand," 
coldly replied the master of the situation. 

" But, captain — a — a — I — a — -protest, sir ! " 

"You may protest, and be — a — as much as you 
like, Mr. S , but in the mean time go for sand." 

And he went. 

AN EVENING ON BOARD SHIP. 

The evening, on board ship in port, is much 
enjoyed by all hands. The officers smoke and gossip 
on the port side of the quarter-deck, the commander 
on the poop, and the men in little circles forward. 
Some play at dominos by the light of the moon, or 
near one of the fixed lights of the ship; others spin 
yarns, about " when they were in the old States frig- 
ate," or, " I was a coming round the Horn once, in 
'47, I think," or, " did I ever tell you about me and 
Capt. Wilkes, when we was on a exploring expedi- 
tion to the South Pole ? " etc. ; but there is always 
sure to be a fair audience gathered round some good 
singer, who tips 'em a shanty in good old sepulchral 
baritone, the audience coming in strong on the 
chorus. 



174: ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 

That night upon the larboard 

Ben Backstay's ghost appeared, 
And from his open lips 

These awful words were heered; 

These awful words were heered. 

•' With a chip chow, 

Cherry chow, fol de rol de diddle; 
And a chip chow, 
Cherry chow, fol de rol de day. 

M ' Now shipmates all assembled, 
Take warning by my fate, 
And when you take your liquor down 
Be sure and take it straight; 
Be sure and take it straight.' 

" With a chip chow," etc. 

Another heart-rending ballad was in eighty-four 

verses, and was entitled, 

"THE LOSS OF THE OLD PEACOCK. 

M In '48 we left Old Point 

T'explore for a southern land, 
Our ship ataut from keel to truck, 

And with proud seamen manned. 
We hove our anchor short apeak 

At the dawning of the day, 
And by six bells in the morning watch 

Were fairly under way. 

Chorus— (strong). 

" Shan de loo ral loo ral li do, 
Shan de loo ral lay. 
Shan de loo ral loo ral li do, 
Shan de loo ral la—a—a—y," etc. 

At 8.45 the drum and fife begin and play various 
tunes, until 9 p. m., when the officer gives the order, 

"Roll off." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 175 

At the third roll, the bell strikes two, the whistles 
" pipe down," and all hands turn in. 

As soon as the whistles cease, the two cornets play 
a duet — "Home, Sweet Home," or some pretty old 
ballad, which sounds inexpressibly beautiful coming: 
over the water on a calm summer night. Later the 
officers seek their rooms, and all is quiet, save the 
tramp of the restless watchers to and fro. 

THE PRESIDENT'S BALL. 

** A man in all the world's new fashion planted, 
That hath a mint of phrases in his brain." 

The President of the Republic of Chili had sent 
an urgent invitation for all the naval officers of the 
ships of the various nationalities lying in the bay of 
Valparaiso, to come to the president's ball at Santi- 
ago, the capital, adding that transportation had been 
furnished and a special train would convey us to San- 
tiago, 150 miles distant. Accordingly, about a dozen 
of us, French, English and American, presented our- 
selves, en grande tenue, cocked hat, sword, epaulette 
and swallow tail, at the ball-room. Strange as it may 
appear, the Englishman who had been two years on 
the coast, and " could never pick up the lingo you 
know," spoke English ; the three Frenchmen spoke 
good French, although there was one of them that 
looked so like an American that I was constantly 



176 OH A MAN-OF-WAR. 

bewildering him, by bantering him in English, of 

which he understood not one word, to speak English. 

Now, I would say, 

"Why don't you talk. You're a Yankee, you know 
you are, and can talk just as well as I can; that's too 
thin, you arc n<> Frenchman," 

and he would smile and show his white teeth, and 
shrug his shoulders, not haying a glimmering, even, 
of what I said. The Americans spoke pure Ameri- 
can, with occasional dashes of French, not always 
apropos, but good in their way, and helping to dis- 
guise their meaning better than their English would. 
Well, we loafed around the magnificent ball-room a 
few times, admiring from afar the many richly dressed 
brunettes, hoping that we might be introduced to 
them. The band was playing the mosl delightful 
waltz, and the chorus of ladies, singing with the 
orchestra, was simply magnificent (these Chilenas are 
very fine musicians), and we knew that we could 
waltz readily in any language. 

Well, as I remarked, 

WE LOUNGED ROUND THE IIAT.L, 

dragging our swords and holding our cooked hats on 
our arms, comparing notes on each round, and ad- 
journing to the supper room at intervals, wli. 
elegant supper was spread and champagne flowed 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 177 

freely, until I thought I should have dropped. The 
Englishmen looked red and mad, the Frenchmen in- 
different, and the Americans disgusted. I went up 
to a fellow in "sojer" clothes, that I took to be one 
of the committee, and conversed with him on the 
subject animatedly in French, English, American and 
Spanish, uniting them all impartially in the same sen- 
tence, and emphasizing the whole with gestures in all 
the living and dead tongues, the little band of mari- 
ners from Valparaiso anxiously watching the result. 
I finished a somewhat incoherent appeal as follows: 

" Look here, Senor, ne pouvez vous pas, present me 
to some of these senoritas to dansez, you know. Je 
suis American naval officer, and I don't connais any 
of the people, et je desire to dance, and so do the 
other fellows." 

Here the other fellows nodded vigorously and said : 

" M, si." 

Well, the committeeman said suivez moi, and I told 
the other fellows he says suivez moi, and if he intro- 
duces me to any of 'em I'll fix you fellows all right. 

I think 

I FOLLOWED THAT VILLAIN 

about an hour, round and round the hall; every now 
and then I would pull his sleeve and say, 

"Senor, there's a nice-looking girl, introduce me to 
her," and he would reply, 
12 



178 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" Espere un poco," 
which, in the language of the modern Castilian 
means, hope a little, or, more freely translated, hold 
on. As we wearily traversed the immense hall, I 
would encounter now and then my American French- 
man, and would accost him with, 

" Est ce que vous avez danse encore mon gar$on f " 
"Pas encore" 
he would cheerfully reply, and go out and take a 
drink, while I was obliged to follow my leader and 
couldn't go with him. 

Just then I caught sight of Charley C , madly 

galloping around with a little girl, and I angrily 
deserted my guide and rejoined my friends. One of 
our officers had found a little English boy, he Baid, 
and he was carrying on quite a conversation with 
him; at least, he thought he was, but I ascertained 
that the little English boy spoke nothing but Spanish- 
Well, we wont home, to the hotel, about 3 a. m., 

none of us having danced at all except Charley C , 

who had one gallop, and who informed us confiden- 
tially that he thought it wasn't likely that he should 
ever get her to dance another with him. After 
spending the next day in Santiago, we started down 
to the depot to take the train for Valparaiso. 



ON A MM-OF-WAE. 17 1 3 

SOME SAILOR SPANISH. 

I walked up to the ticket office, and throwing down a 
twenty-dollar gold piece asked for four tickets; the 
clerk pushed back the coin, with some remark in 
Spanish, and I endeavored to explain to him all about 
it, you know. 

In vain I said this is American gold, and is worth 
twenty-one dollars and sixty cents, Chileno money; 
he pushed it back, saying, 

"iVb entiendo Ingles, Senor, y no se oro Ameri- 
cano" 
so the paymaster pushed me one side, saying, 

" Let me tell him." 

Fixing his eagle eye firmly on the little Dago, he 
commenced: 

"Look here, Senor, nous sommes officiates Ameri- 
cana, and we've come up to the president's ball, you 
know. El hallo del Presidente, you see; and este oro, 
vale mas que el otro ; do you sabe ? " 

The Chileno smiled blandly upon the enthusiastic- 
linguist, and for the twenty-third time repeated 
calmly: 

"iVo entiendo Ingles, Seiior/" (I don't under- 
stand English, sir.) 

"Now, get out of the way you fellows," sai«l 
Charley, " and let me tell him." 



180 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

( barley had made a cruise in the Mediterranean, 

and could speak any language. 

Planting himself squarely before the small window, 
he brought his port eye to bear on the placid counte- 
nance of the undisturbed official and said sternly, 

" 1 labia JEspanol f " 

" >SV," promptly answered the Chileno. 

" Parlez vous Fran^ais, bue/w ? " somewhat inco- 
herently pursued Charley, following up his advantage. 

" Mira, Senor" and thinking that Mira sounded 
well he said it again. 

" Nosotros sommes Amerlcanus et we come up to 
the president's ball, and that oro is worth more than 
your old Dago money by a dollar and sixty cents, 
and if you don't choose to take that money we'll ride 
down in your derned old wagon for nothing." 

"iVo entiendo Ingles" replied the imperturbable 
clerk, and our stock of language was exhausted. 

Fortunately a gentleman, better posted in the value 
of American gold, gave us four Chileno five-dollar 
pieces for a twenty, and we rode down to Valparaiso 
in triumph. 



OX A MAX-UF-WAR. 181 



LETTER XVIII. 

" Some pick out bullets from the vessel's side, 
Some drive old oakum through each seam and rift." 

CAPTURING A DESERTER ON BOARD A PERUVIAN MAN- 
OF-WAR THE LINGUISTIC DIFFICULTIES OF THE 

PERUVIAN X T AVT BLLLT's $800 TEMPERANCE LEC- 
TURE FOREIGN NOBLEMEN AS CADETS AT THE 

UNITED STATES X T AVAL ACADEMY AS COOL AS 

"MIDSHIPMAN EASY" WHAT A SECRETARY OF THE 

NAVY KNEW ABOUT SLOOPS. 

You remember reading a short time ago, an account 
of the engagement of two or three English men-of- 
war with the Peruvian iron-clad Huascar, in which 
the latter vessel appeared to considerable advantage. 

AFTER A DESERTER. 

I went on board the Huascar some years ago, while 
attached to a ship in the harbor of Callao, to look for 
a deserter. The officer of the deck, a trim little 
Peruvian, with a very small waist, and very pegtop 
trousers, received me very cordially and seemed eager 
to oblige me in finding my man. 

" Yon Schmidt ? " he repeated after me. 

"No le conozco " (I don't know him). 

I insinuated that he probably called himself now 



1*2 ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 

Lopez de Vega, or Antonio Martinez Santo Carapo 
instead of John Smith. Struck with the idea, he 
turned to the boatswain's mate, an old English man- 
of-war's man apparently, and addressing him in 
Spanish, as Patron, he volubly gave directions that 
Antonio Garcia be sent to the mast. The old fellow 
stared at him, and then walked across the deck to a 
genuine Dago, and asked in an under-tone, 

" What in thunder did he say ? " 

The answer must have been intelligible, for I soon 
heard his pipe and the cry, 

" Anto-onio Garcy, do you hear there Garcy, you're 
wanted aft." 

I laughed heartily at the idea of trying to run an 
American man-of-war, where the officers of the deck, 
and the boatswain's mate, spoke an entirely different 
language; it seemed to work well, however, for < rarcy 
turned out to be plain Smith, and I bore him off in 
triumph. 

RUNNING A SHIP IN SEVERAL LANGUAGES. 

On another occasion the Independencia got under 
weigh and passed out near us. The anchor was up to 
the hawse-hole, and the officer of the deck, wishing to 
know if the cat-fall was hooked (I don't know what 
they call it in Spanish), called out, 

" Esta usted listo, Sefior?" (Are yon ready, sir?) 
Back came the answer, in pure Anglo-Saxon, 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 183 

" All ready with the cat, sir," 
and our amusement was at a climax, when the man 
in the chains, heaving the lead, chanted out, 

" And a quar-r-ter five-e." 

The Peruvians are poor sailors, and not original, so 
they employ English, American and German experts, 
for continual examples to their mixed and otherwise 
useless crews. 

GOOD FRIDAY AT CALIAO. 

One day in the harbor — I suppose it must have been 
Good Friday — there was considerable of a commotion 
in the squadron of French and Peruvian men-of-war 
lying near us. At 12 o'clock noon the yards were 
cockbilled, and the braces slackened up, making the 
ships look as untidy and desolate as possible, and at 
the first gun, out went an effigy at the fore yard-arm 
of the flag-ship, swinging back and forth with the send 
it got from the ship's side. 

I was puzzled to know the meaning of the perform- 
ance, until one of the quartermasters volunteered the 
remark that " he guessed they were hanging Judas 
Iscariot." And so it proved, and old Judas hung 
there until sunset, when down he came, with the 
colors, and the yards being squared and gear hauled 
taut, the ships resumed their ordinary trim appear- 
ance. 



184: ON A 1CAN-OF-WAB. 

BUYING A DIAMOND. 

One of our gun-boats visited Rio on her way out to 
join the Pacific squadron, and lay there for several 
days. One day one of the officers, a classmate of 
mine, happened on shore, and having been at sea a 
good while, took a drink or two to make up for lost 
time. As he walked down the street, opposite a large 
jewelry store, he was hailed by the paymaster and 
doctor to come over and buy or look at some dia- 
monds. Billy muttered something about not wanting 
any diamonds just then, but good-naturedly joined 
them. They selected two modest diamonds, had 
them marked and called to Billy to know how lie 
liked them. He looked contemptuously at the little 
brilliants, and majestically called on the merchant for 
some diamonds. None of your little trash, but some 
of your big diamonds, and had marked for him a gem 
as big as a three-cent piece. 

The next day one of the officers said: 

" Billy, when are you going ashore after your dia- 
mond ? " 

u My what?" 

"Why the diamond you bought yesterday. Don't 
you know that you bought a diamond yesterday as 
big as a dead-light, and had it marked for you ? " 

Well, Billy interviewed the paymaster, drew, 
begged and borrowed all the money he could, and 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 185 

with a bag full of English sovereigns wended his 
way to a broker's office.. Fortunately for him English 
gold was at a high premium, and on account of the 
Paraguayan war, milreis were at a discount, so he 
made the exchange, bought the diamond for about 
$800 in gold, and with a sorrowful heart came on 
board again, knowing that circumstances over which 
he had no control, would materially interfere with 
his going on shore any more for the next four months. 
He sent the diamond home, however, and about a 
year after sold it for some $1,500. Notwithstanding, 
he says it was the most powerful temperance lecture 
he ever experienced. 

NO REVERENCE FOR DUCAL RANK. 

For the last ten or twelve years, there have been 
several foreign youths at the U. S. Naval Academy, 
being educated in all the branches taught there. 

There are now several Japanese cadets there, and 
some twelve years ago the Due de Penthievre, son of 
the Prince de Joinville, graduated from the Academy. 
It is very creditable to our young country that the 
children of the old should be sent to us for instruc- 
tion and training, and the result has been so good 
that it is probable that our schools will always have 
some such representative under instruction. 

The Due was called Pierre d'Orleans at the Acad- 



180 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

emy, and the midshipmen, with the true American 
reverence for rank, called him " Pete." 

He was smart, quick, and a general favorite, and 
you may suppose that he could not have talked much 
of the blue blood of the Bourbons, and his long line 
of ancestry, and be popular. 

He went out as navigator of one of the school 
ships on their summer cruise, and, one day was bother- 
ing a lieutenant who was sitting writing in his stale- 
room, by asking questions, pulling his hair, or some- 
thing of the kind, until the lieutenant turned round 
and said deferentially, 

" Oh, go away, King! Feet (he has tremendoxu 
feet), take his Royal Highness away. Look here, 
Penthy, if you don't get out of this I'll put a bigger 
head on you than you have got now." 

The Due rose to the rank of lieutenant, I think, 
then resigned, and, if I am not mistaken, was made 
admiral of the Brazilian navy. 

I have heard frequently of the lavish hospitality 
he invariably shows to his old classmates whenever 
he encounters them. 

C. WANTS TO GO TOO. 

A number of years ago a couple of midshipmen 
were sitting in the steerage of one of our sloops-of- 
war; one, meditating with his heels against the door 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 187 

of his locker, the other, concocting a formidable let- 
ter to the Secretary of the Navy. 

" What are you writing, Jimmy ? " said the first. 

" Writing for leave of absence for two weeks," was 
the reply. 

" Tell 'em that I want to go, too, will you ? " 

" All right," said Midshipman Easy, quietly adding 
a P. S.: 

" C. says that he wants to go too." 

In a few days back came a letter from the Depart- 
ment for the enterprising midshipman, formally grant- 
ing him two weeks' leave of absence agreeably to his 
request of the 15th instant, and adding, 

"If midshipman C. desires leave of absence, the 
Department will be pleased to grant it, if he will make 
the application in proper form." 

The midshipman has ever since been known by the 
sobriquet of " C. who wants to go too." 

SLOOPS AND OAKUM. 

A number of years ago, the then Secretary of the 
Navy was induced by the Advisory Board of Naval 
Officers to ask Congress for authority to build six 
sloops-of-war. The Secretary, a very able lawyer, 
but more conversant with the single-masted North 
River sloops than with men-of-war in general, was 
very much astonished when the first of the six sloops- 
of-war was put in commission. 



188 on A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Upon seeing a full-rigged, three-masted ship, costing 
some $750,000, instead of the sloop his imagination 
had pictured, he turned indignantly to the officers in 
attendance and said: 

" Gentlemen, you have deceived me, these are not 
sloops, these are ships" 

There is another, a rumor only, that a high official, 
on being told that oakum (old rope pulled apart for 
calking seams) was very scarce, said innocently: 

"Why, didn't they plant as much as usual last 
year?" 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 189 



LETTER XIX. 

BULL-FIGHT AT LIMA, PERU WHAT A BULL-RING IS 

LIKE THE BULL MAKES THE ATTACK THE MATA- 
DOR AND HIS SWORD BULL NO. 1 DIES GAME A 

PLUCKY LITTLE BULL MAKES MATTERS LIVELY 

"THE KING OP THE PROTESTANTS " TRUTHS 

DOUBTED AND MUNCHAUSENISMS BELIEVED. 

The Peruvian Fourth of July comes on the 28th, 
I believe, and I went up to Lima on that day to see 
a bull-fight. 

THE BULL-BING 

was circular, about 500 feet in diameter, having a 
curved row of seats of eight or ten tiers, like a circus, 
extending round the outer rim, a portion being divided 
off into private boxes. I was fortunate enough to be 
invited to accompany a party of young and old ladies, 
and we had a box. There was seating capacity for 
about 10,000 people, I should say, with many stand- 
ing up. A fine band played between the acts, and 
the scene was a very exciting one. 

Shortly after we took our seats the gates opened 
and some half a dozen horsemen, caballeros, rode into 
the inclosure and round the ring. The horses were 
very indifferent-looking ones, but proved to be quick 



190 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

enough to keep out of the way. A large Dumber, 
say fifteen capadores, were moving about the ring 
clad in fancy Spanish dress, doublet and hose, with 
scarlet-lined cloaks or capes. 

Suddenly, amid a flourish of trumpets, the cattle 
gate opened and 

IN BOUNDED A BULL 

with long sharp horns. He seemed startled and some- 
what frightened at first, but, recovering himself, he 
started after a horseman, who had backed his horse 
into position, and furiously chased him round the 
ring. The horse seemed to canter or leap with the 
bull, so that though his horn was almost against the 
flank of the horse, he couldn't quite reach him. 

Soon the capadores came round, and flaunting their 
gayly colored capes drew off the bull's attention by 
cries of 

"Torof ah, Toro! mal Toro!" 

He would stand still and hesitate, and finally charge 
the nearest one, for, say fifty feet, when another 
would draw him off, and so on until he was almost 
exhausted. All this time they were firing oft* sky- 
rockets and fire-works, although it was broad day- 
light. Now my attention was called to a couple of 
gayly dressed men carrying rods called 



ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 191 

BANDERILLOS, 

with barbed-pointed ends, the rods being dressed 
with cut paper. One of these, holding a dart in eacli 
hand, followed the bull, taunting him to turn on him. 
Suddenly the bull turned short round and charged 
him; just as it seemed as if the lowered horns would 
catch him, he quickly planted both banderillos into 
the neck of the bull and darted to one side; the cut 
papers strung out twenty feet in length ; the bull 
pawed and tried to shake out the darts, but the hooks 
stuck securely, and held them for a long time. Some- 
times the darts have explosives in them, and burst 
after a while, driving the poor animal almost mad. 
And now the other banderillero plants his two darts 
successfully in the bull's neck and he is almost beside 
himself. By this time 

THE CHEERFUL AUDIENCE HAS GROWN BLOODTHIRSTY, 

and a cry goes up, 

" El Matador, El Matador! " (the slayer), 
and a fine-looking fellow sprang forward, carrying a 
stout sword, about six feet in length, and a small red 
cape. He approached the bull, and after several 
attempts, induced the maddened animal to attack 
him, as he had done the bander illeros. Finally, just 
as the lowered head was close under his hand, lie 
struck his sword back of the fore shoulder almost to 
the hilt, amid the cheers of the assembly. 



192 ON A MAN-uK-N AK. 

THE POOR BULL STAGGERED, 

vomiting blood — a few steps and fell, when a man 
ran quickly up and with a dagger severed the spinal 
cord at the neck, and bull No. 1 was dead. 

While the matador advanced to the box of tin- 
Mtmicipalidad (the common council), to receive a roll 
of silver soles (dollars), a team of six mules dashed 
in gayly caparisoned; the head of the bull was lifted 
on a low, two-wheel truck, chained, and, amid a burst 
of quick music from the band, away they dashed, 
making a circuit of the ring at a gallop, and dragged 
the bull from the ring. I should have said thai the 
next bull had been standing in a small, close pen, with 
a kindly dago overhead, whose business it was to keep 
pricking him with a lance, to have him in trim when 
wanted. 

Again the band played, again the gates opened, 
and 

IN DASHED A SECOND BULL, 

his gay blanket, not strapped on, but pinned to the 
hide at the four corners with fish-hooks so it wouldn't 
come off ; he rushed swiftly to the center of the 
bull-ring, where a figure of a man turning a lathe 
run by fire-works was in operation ; catching the 
figure on his horns he threw it high in the air as it 
exploded, and then trampled it under his feet amid a 
cloud of dust and burning powder. 



ON A MAK-OF-WAE. 198 

The capadores approached him carefully, but he 
would not attack them beyond making a short run of 
a few steps; the audience murmured, 

" Mai toro no sirve, no vale nada" 
and the capadores renewed their efforts, one catching 
the bull by the tail, but in vain; he wouldn't fight, 
and several other bulls being let in, the herd was 
driven ignominiously out by one man with a whip. 

ONCE MORE A. BURST OF MUSIC, 

and another bull, a little fellow, came bounding in; 
he Avas as quick as lightning, and I tell you the capa- 
dores scattered; he possessed the disagreeable quality 
of sticking to one man at a time, in spite of the 
efforts of the others to draw him off. One fellow, 
closely pursued, could not reach one of the slips, and 
sprang up the wall of the ring, clambering into one 
of the boxes, 

WITH THE BULL'S LONG SHARP HORN 

just missing him by about an inch. As for me, 1 
hoped that the bull would catch him; my sympathies 
were entirely with the bull. A capadore ran up on 
one side, and the bull started for him, and he had 
just time to reach one of the little barricades built 
up at intervals round the edge of the ring, with just 
room for a man to pass behind. Here he supposed 
himself safe, but the little bull followed him in, and 

13 



194 ON A 1CAN-OF-WAB. 

stuck when about one-third of the way in, the man 
rolling out at the other side scared half to death. 

" Buen toro/" 
the people shouted and laughed, but only for a few 
minutes. "Kill him," was soon the cry, and the 
plucky little bull was murdered, as were his prede- 
cessors. 

SIX BULLS WERE KILLED 

in two hours, and then a man came in on the bull's 
back, having a strap round the body of the bull to 
hold on to. He rode the animal round where the bull 
chose to go, and, watching his opportunity, slid 
off and escaped up the box fronts. For this feat the 
bull became his property, and was driven out alive. 

I noticed that the name of one of the young ladies 
in our box was 

AGRIPPINA, 

and I remarked to her mother that it was a Bible 
name. 

" Bible, que es eso f " (What is that ?) 

I said, " the Bible is our holy book." 

"Oh! and she is in that, eh?" 

"Yes, I am a Protestant. You know Agrippa 
was king of the a — a — (what in thunder is Jews? 
John, do you know what Jews is in Spanish ?) King 
of the a — a — " 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 195 

" De los Protestantes f " (Of the Protestants) said 
the old lady, anxious to help me out. 

" Esto es muy eurioso ; mira, Agrippina, su nom- 
bre es la raisma del Hey de los Protestantes." (That 
is very curious; look, Agrippina, your name is the 
same as the king of the Protestants.) 

Fortunately the bull at this moment almost suc- 
ceeded in ripping up a horse and rider, and the atten- 
tion of the dear girls was attracted to the ring. 

GEOGRAPHICAL AND CLIMATOLOGICAL INFORMATION. 

One girl finally asked me: 

"You live in New York ? " 

" No, about 800 miles west of New York." 

" Are there cities so far from New York ? " 

"Oh, yes! I live near a lake of fresh water bigger 
than the whole state of Peru." 

"Fresh water! Oh, Senor ! there is no such thing ; 
and is the health good there ? " 

"Good! why they had to kill a man out there the 
other day to start a grave-yard." 

" Nombre de Dios ! Mira, Agrippina, necessitaba 
matar a un hombre para principiar un lugar de en- 
ter remiento." (Look, Agrippina! they had to kill a 
man to commence a place of interment.) 

When I told them of the vast prairies covered 
with grass, of the groves of trees, of the thunder- 



L96 OX A MAX-iiF-WAK. 

storms, of the rain, and of the flashes of lightning, 
tluv looked at me with surprise that I should exped 
them to believe such nonsense. They never saw 
green things grow without patient watering and 
attention, and as for rain, why should they believe 
it ? they never had seen it rain in Pern. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 197 



LETTER XX. 

" With roomy decks, her guns of mighty strength, 
Deep is her draught, and warlike is her length." 

a. midshipman's experience on board the brig 

PERRY CHASE AND CAPTURE OF THE PRIVATEER 

SAVANNAH A CHOICE OF LIQUORS. 

After graduating from the Naval Academy, I was 
ordered in June, 1861, for duty on board 

THE BRIG PERRY, 

then fitting out from the New York Navy Yard. 

Being a midshipman I was only entitled to quarters 
in the steerage, but the partition having been pulled 
down, I was perforce in the ward-room, swinging in 
a hammock from whence I was turned out at six bells 
(1 a. m.), to make room to set the ward-room break- 
fast table. The other officers slept in bunks around 
the ward-room, with lockers for their clothes in front 
or inboard of them, and these lockers furnished a 
permanent seat for them at the mess table. The 
captain had a small trunk cabin, a little higher and 
abaft ours, to which entrance was gained from the 
quarter-deck by a flight of three steps down. You 
could not swing a kitten by the tail in either cabin 
or ward-room, but possibly they didn't want any kit- 



198 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

tons slung, and we got used to the small quarters 
after a while. 

At the time, I thought the cabin magnificent, and 
two years afterward, when I might have had com- 
mand of the Perry, I sneered contemptuously at the 
small quarters as they then appeared. 

The lieutenant commanding the Perry died a few 
years ago a rear admiral; the executive officer, also a 
lieutenant, is now a commodore, the navigator a com- 
mander, and I, well, a historian. 

ASTONISHING A CAPTAIN. 

There was always more or less feeling shown by 
the older officers against graduates of the Naval 
Academy, and the commanding officer took it for 
granted that I did not know much of anything. s<» 
for the first two weeks I did nothing but drill the 
men at small arms, then single sticks, and exercise 
my navigation with the navigator, taking sights and 
working the position of the ship. 

From time to time I astonished the captain by 
exhibiting a knowledge of different subjects con- 
nected with the service, provoking the somewhat 
satirical question: 

" Why, do they teach you that at the Naval Acad- 
emy?" 

I remember on one occasion that he was really aston- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 199 

ished because I worked out the position of the ship 
one day, and reported it to him, the navigator being 
sick, and how pleased he was, because the position, 
as found by the navigator at 4 p. m. of the same day 
differed from mine some thirty miles, and he attrib- 
uted the error to me, and was correspondingly dis- 
gusted when the navigator generously claimed the 
mistake as his own. 

NAVIGATION. 

" Eude as their ships was navigation then, 
No useful compass or meridian known: 
Coasting, they kept the land within their ken, 
And knew no north but when the pole-star shone." 

By navigation on board a man-of-war, is meant not 
the conduct of the ship as regards the working of 
the ship itself, its evolutions and internal discipline, 
but simply the ascertaining correctly the exact posi- 
tion of the ship at any time upon the chart or map. 

The latitude is ascertained usually by observations 
of the sun at high noon, though it may be obtained 
by observation of the moon and stars. 

If the north star was exactly at the North Pole, 
instead of revolving a degree and a half from it, you 
could find the latitude simply by measuring its alti- 
tude, or height above the horizon; indeed, if you can 
see the north star, you can form a pretty tolerable 
guess how many degrees high it is, and such number 
of degrees will be about the latitude. 



200 ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 

As a degree is sixty miles, you can readily sec that 
it will not do to guess at it if the safely of a valu- 
able ship, freighted with valuable lives, depends upon 
your accuracy. Knowing the latitude, we can find 
the longitude by an observation of the sun, moon or 
stars, if we are provided with a clock or chronometer 
showing Greenwich time. 

At the risk of being tedious, I will explain a little 
the principle of 

A TIME BIGHT. 

The object is to find the time of day to a second. 
If we know that, we compare it with our Greenwich 
time, and the difference is our longitude. 11* our 
time is five hours earlier than the Greenwich dock 
shows, of course, we are five hours west of Green- 
wich, or five-twenty-fourths of 360 degrees, which is 
75 degrees west longitude. In order t«> find the local 
time, the navigator goes on deck at seven bells (T.-'io 
a. m.), the sun being about twenty-five degrees high, 
and with his sextant measures the height of the sun, 
noting the time by watch or chronometer; having 
the latitude, sun's altitude and the declination (which 
Latter is given for every day in the year in the 
Nautical Almanac), he lias three sides of a spherical 
triangle to find one angle, which is the local apparent 
time. 

As an error of four seconds of time is equivalent 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 201 

to one mile, it is of importance that this computation 
should be accurate. Of course, there are numerous 
corrections to be applied in the actual computation, 
such as dip, refraction, semi-diameter and parallax. 
Having found, therefore, the latitude and longitude, 
their intersection on the chart will be the position of 
the ship. 

Well, we got under weigh one morning and sailed 
out to sea in the little brig, bound for the blockade 
off Charleston, South Carolina. 

As it happened, the treasury of the United States 
was quite empty, and we could get no money, conse- 
quently the ward-room mess were unable to lay in 
any stores, and we lived on our rations of pork, 
beans, salt horse, etc. Mot ! it was red hot, cooped 
up in that little box, a hundred and fifty of us ; the 
water, too, was warm. The tanks were so small and 
the ship so small that she rode light, with little draft 
of water, and that of the warmest, I assure you. 

CAPTURE OF THE SAVANNAH. 

Well, we were detailed for the blockade of St. 
Mary's River, oif Fernandina, Florida, to see that 
none of 'em got away, I suppose, and we perspired 
oft' that port for some weeks. 

One day, when cruising between Charleston and 
Fernandina, I have forgotten whether going to or 



L'O^ ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

returning from Fernandina, we sighted two sail, a 
brig and a schooner, susjiicious, very suspicious; so 
we went for them. The brig kept away to the east- 
ward, while the schooner hauled her wind for the 
south. Following some occult train of reasoning of 
his own, our skipper concluded to follow the schooner; 
so we followed, keeping the chase to leeward of us 
on our port bow. 

We followed out the rules for chasing to leeward, 
windward, etc., keeping him exactly on the same 
bearing and gaining on him. 

We chased him from 4 p. m. until night, which was, 
fortunately for us, clear and bright, when our sails 
being dampened by the dew, and being more lofty 
than the schooner's, drew better, and we rapidly 
overhauled him. 

About 9 p. m. we luffed up a little and sent a shot 
across his bows, which he returned with a shot, evi- 
dently aimed at the southern cross, for it went over 
the royal yard. As we lost way by luffing to bring 
our guns to bear, we concluded not to luff, but kept 
steadily on after him. By this time we had all got 
excited, and watched the flying schooner with great 
interest, taking frequent bearings to see if he had 
drawn ahead or fallen off. About 10.30 p. m. we had 
got so near that we braced up a little and brought 
our three guns and a howitzer en a Bide to bear, and 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 203 

we blazed away, the schooner returning some half a 
dozen shots. 

By some extraordinary conduct I had so far won 
the confidence of the commander as to be intrusted 
with the sole control of one twelve-pound howitzer 
and four men, and I shot off that howitzer at the 
little schooner till I couldn't rest; a Gatling gun 
wasn't a patching to it. I suppose that schooner sur- 
rendered over a dozen times, but we were excited and 
fired away until, during a lull, the captain of the 
schooner, executing a war-dance on the deck of his 
little ship, shouted so loudly, 

"I surrender, I surrender; don't shoot any more ! " 
that we reluctantly ceased firing and sent a boat to 
him in charge of the second lieutenant. 

In about half an hour the boat returned, having 
left a prize crew on board, and bringing the news 
that the prize was the privateer Savannah from 
Charleston, South Carolina, Baker commanding. 

When the boat came alongside, a strange figure, in 
his shirt sleeves, came on board with Capt. Baker, 
remarking volubly and energetically: 

" You've treated me all right aboard your old Stars 
and Bars, but if you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I am 
glad to get back to the old Stars and Stripes." 



1J04 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

HE WAS DRINK, V B8, VKKY HKI NK. 

It transpired that the brig we saw had just been 
captured and a prize crew put on board, the Savannah 
taking the captain of the brig out before sending her 
away, and this was the captain. lie said, afterwards, 
that lie did not usually drink, but was so bine over 
the loss of his ship that he got drunk to drown his 
sorrows. 

The next morning they cleaned the schooner out, 
and threw over about fifty empty bottles — more rum 
than they had powder. 

Capt. Baker said that he was just twenty-four 
hours out from Charleston; that this was the first 
privateer commissioned; that he had returned our 
fire until his pivot and only gun had kicked over the 
carriage, and then he surrendered. 

One shot went through his foresail, one under the 
main boom, one carried away the jib, and his crew 
refused to do anything, but went below ami got 
drunk. So he lowered the sails himself and hollered 
"I surrender ! " until he was hoarse. 

We sent the Savannah home to New Fork, and 
some ten years after I got about $50 prize money as 
my share of the capture. 

We had a report on board ship that the merchants 
of New York, had offered a bonus of $60.n<»o for the 
capture of the first privateer of the war, and there 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 205 

wasn't a man or boy on board that didn't figure 
before night what his percentage of 860,000 would 
be. We searched around for three or four days, but 
we didn't catch the brig, and long afterward we 
learned that she got safely into Georgetown. 

GOBBLING A TUG. 

Among the papers of the Savannah we found an 
arrangement with the Charleston authorities that a 
signal of three green lights and one red light pre- 
ceded, and followed by a rocket, would mean that 
the privateer Savannah was off the bar with a prize, 
send a tug. So after consulting with the admiral our 
wily commander determined to sneak close up to the 
bar at midnight and entice a tug out and gobble it. 

We secured the flagship's pilot, therefore, and 
after lying all day, with our prize in plain sight of 
the rebels, we got under weigh at dark and, in charge 
of the pilot, we sailed softly in; every sailor was on 
deck armed to the teeth, and midst great excitement, 
all the greater because suppressed, we sailed, as I 
remarked before, softly in. When we had reached a 
spot which the pilot said, in a whisper, was the bar, 
we took in the royal and top-gallant sails, hauled up 
the courses, and braced the main-yard aback. With 
the utmost secrecy a rocket was mysteriously brought 
on deck and sent up, then, the quartermaster, who 



206 OS A MAN-OF-W AU. 

had had his three green and one red light ready 
for the last hour, hidden in a division tub, trotted 
them out and hoisted them to the main truck. 
Another rocket was sent up and then we waited for 
the tug to come out and be gobbled. An hour passed, 
but no tug came. 

Of course there must be some mistake. So the 
commander consulted the signal card again, but it 
was all right; so up went another rocket, the lanterns 
hauled down, pricked up a little and sent up again. 
Well, we lounged around the deck in all the panoply 
of grim-visaged war, all night, preceding and follow- 
ing more rockets, without results. It was a fraud. 
No tug came out to be gobbled, and we felt ill used. 
Just at daylight, or a little before, some one di.^eov- 
a long, low black vessel about a mile distant, and 
every one was again all excitement and mystery. As 
it lightened, however, the vessel got larger, and we 
began to think that they had sent too big a tug for 
such a small schooner. As we stared at the vessel 
apprehensively, it growing bigger and bigger, a 
quartermaster, just behind me, muttered, 
" If it ain't the Wabash, I'm a Dutchman." 
Yes, we had been lying under the stern of the 
Wabash, flagship, all night, sending up rockets and 
showing green and red lights, to the great amuse- 
ment of the watchers on board that frigate. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 207 

RUM, PUNCH, OR BRANDY. 

We hear so often of the free, open-hearted sailor, 
of his native simplicity and simple courage, that I 
know you will be glad of an instance in point rela- 
tive to the qualities described. 

An old boatswain's mate, learning that his former 
captain was in command of a ship lying off the navy 
yard, called to pay his respects; he was shown into 
the cabin, and the captain, unaffectedly glad to see 
his old shipmate, after a moment's conversation, said 
hospitably: 

"Well, Jack, of course you'll have something to 
drink. Will you have some rum or some punch or a 
little brandy ? " 

"Thank ye, sir, much obliged," said the horny- 
handed son of the sea, with simple ingenuousness, " I 
think I will have a little rum while you're mixing the 
punch, and take the brandy afterward." 

AN OLD TIME SPLENDID OFFICER. 

I remember once, when a midshipman, while stand- 
ing the mid-watch, I was gossiping with one of the 
quartermasters about the different officers in the ser- 
vice. I was much amused with the ideas of a splen- 
did officer as entertained from the sailor's stand-point. 

"There's Lieut. I ," said the quartermaster, 

"did you know him? I sailed with him in the 



208 OH A MA.\-()|'-\\ \w. 

Levant; he was & splendid officer. T have seen him 

come on deck to take the mid-watch so drunk thai 
lie had to hold on to the bridge fail, and I have Been 
him carry royals on her until he had the lee guns in 
the water. I tell ye he was a bully officer. Why, 
he'd put you in irons as soon as look at ye, he would; 
he used to swear like a pirate when he was working 
ship, and he was just as kind a man as you'd ever 
want to sail with. Yes (with a sigh), he was just a 
splendid officer." 

I am glad to say however, that the splendid officers 
above referred to are now very few and far between. 

LAKE HURON IN JANUARY. 

One cold winter on the lake**, a captain for a con- 
sideration, agreed to bring a steamer from Chicago 
to Detroit. While coming down Lake Huron, one 
evening in January, the captain being on deck, heat- 
ing his arms to try and keep from freezing to death, 
he observed a man going forward with the red and 
green sidelights, usually carried by vessels under- 
weigh. 

"What are you doing with those lights?' 1 he 
shouted. 

" Going to put 'em on the bows." 

"What for? Do you suppose that there is any 
other infernal fool out, this time of year, hut us? 
Put 'em away." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 209 



LETTER XXI. 

STATIONED AT NEWPORT RECEIVING A FRENCH MAN- 
OF-WAR CONVERSATION UNDER DIFFICULTIES 

TELLING THE NEWS IN FRACTURED FRENCH THE 

ADMIRAL — GRAND CELEBRATION ON THE FOURTH 
OF JULY A BEAUTIFUL ILLUMINATION AN INDE- 
SCRIBABLE AND MAGNIFICENT DISPLAY AN UN- 
FORTUNATE INTERRUPTION AND CONSEQUENT LOSS 

OF DIGNITY A COLORED RESERVOIR OF FUN AND 

MISCHIEF TACKING SHIP BY BOOK. 

Shortly after the capture of Richmond we were 
lying at anchor off Newport, Rhode Island, when a 
large French man-of-war came in and anchored near 
us. As it was about 6 p. m our captain, fearing that 
the Naval Academy authorities might not have 
observed the arrival of the stranger, sent me on 
board to welcome the new-comer and explain that the 
hopitalities of the port would be extended, through 
the proper officer, in the morning. 

As I boarded the Frenchman, I said, slowly, to the 
first officer that I met, 

"DO YOU SPEAK ENGLISH, SIR?" 

He extended his arms, raised his shoulders, bowed, 
and passed me along to a second, with, 



210 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" Entrez dans le cabin, Monsieur." (Enter the 
cabin, sir.) 

I leisurely said to the second, 

" Do you speak English, sir ?" 

Following the precise example of his illustrious 
predecessor, he turned me over to a third. After the 
second repetition I said confidentially to the fourth, 

" Surely you speak English, sir ? " 

He bowed, extended his arms graciously, thereby 
raising his shoulders, and fairly entered me into the 
cabin. 

I walked quickly up to a fine-looking officer, think- 
ing, well, now this is the boss, and smiling sweetly, 
chanted my everlasting 

" Do you speak English, sir ? " 

He smiled, bowed, and extended his arms, thereby 
raising his shoulders (I think that I have used this 
expression before somewhere), and, turning to another 
good-looking Frenchman, presented me to the admiral 
in French. 

I bowed pleasantly to the admiral, and drawing 
myself up haughtily, I gently whistled, 

" Do you speak English, sir ? " 

He smiled cheerfully, extended his arms, thereby 
raising his shoulders, bowed and said that he didn't. 
Feeling that I had touched bottom I sank into a chair 
and said: 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 211 

" JBong" 

I then coolly, 

IN THE MOST EXECRABLE FRENCH, 

announced who and what I was; told him that New- 
port was a place of baths; that the United States 
Naval Academy was temporarily situated there; that 
some one would be off in the morning to say how 
d'ye do; that it was a very pleasant day, and what 
ship is this, and where are you from. He answered 
that it was the French line of battle ship " Jean 
Bart," named after our celebrated French privateers- 
man Jean Bart, you know (I said, " Oh, certainly "), 
from Martinique. 

While I was trying to remember whether Martin- 
ique was in the West Indies, or near Madagascar, east 
coast of Africa, he continued in an easy (for him) 
chat, in French, as to the weather they had had, etc., 
winding up by asking, 

" What's the news ? " 

I answered, 

" Oh, nothing in particular, but I have the latest 
papers on board and will send them over when I 
return to my own ship." 

The admiral said then, 

"Where is Sherman?" 

"General Sherman? I don't know; perhaps in 
Washington or maybe Chicago." 



212 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

" Yes, but he made a great expedition." 

" Oh, yes, a very great expedition." 

" Yes, a big thing. But where is he now ? " 

"Where? I don't know exactly; I guess in 
Washington." 

" His army, where is it ? " 

I turned round and said: 

" Look here, Monsieur, what is the last news you 
have had, anyway ? " 

He answered, 

"March 1st." 

TELLING THE NEWS. 

" Didn't you know that Sherman marched to the 
sea; that he captured Savannah; that Richmond was 
taken; that Joe Johnston and Kirby Smith had sur- 
rendered ? " 

" Richmond was to be taken," he said, " but is not 
yet taken ? " 

"Well, it just is taken," said I. "Didn't you 
know that the President had been assassinated ? " 

"What, Lincoln?" 

" Yes, you see my sword hilt draped with crape, 
and my left arm with crape on ! " 

" Then Mr. Johnson is President now ? " 

" Yes, indeed." 

"Oh, but that is terrible; the President assassin- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 213 

ated; he was a good man, your Mr. Lincoln — how 
did it happen ? " 

Well, in my wretched French I told the sad story 
to my excited hearers, they rapidly supplying a word 
when I could not translate it. I told who Booth was, 
how he secreted himself near the box of the Presi- 
dent at Ford's Theater, how he fired, leaped to the 
stage and escaped with a broken leg. How he was 
surrounded in a — a — (what is that place where you 
put horses ?) JEcurier, thanks; how they said surren- 
der. No, I fight till I die. How the bullet from 
John Boston Corbett's musket killed him, etc., until 
my mouth felt as if I had chewed gum for two hours 
steady. 

Just then the cabin door opened and the orderly 
announced, 

" Tin officier de la Marine des ittats Uhis." 

I jumped up saying, 

" Here is 

AN OFFICER FROM THE NAVAL ACADEMY, 

I must step out." 

As I moved towards the cabin door it opened again, 
and a lieutenant in the United States Navy came in, 
and walking up to me said hesitatingly, 

" Est ce que vous parlez Francalsf " 

" Un peu, Tom," said I — a little. 



W J14 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Poor old Tom, he was as blind as a bat, and 
couldn't tell me from a French admiral. Well, I rat- 
tled off what I knew, the ship's name, where from 
and what I had told them, and, exacting a promise not 
to tell ashore that I had been on board, I returned to 
my own ship. 

The admiral came on board the Sabine before he 
sailed from Newport, and, on leaving, thanked me 
kindly for my information as above narrated. 

Our officer of the deck spoke no French, but not 
relishing being left out of the conversation, would 
shout back in broken English answers to the ques- 
tions as translated. It is funny, but it is the preva- 
lent idea that when you wish a foreigner to under- 
stand you, you must talk abominable English to him, 
and drive it home by shouting. 

We afterwards learned that the admiral spoke 
English tolerably well. 

On the following 

FOURTH OF JTTLT 

we were lying in the harbor of New London, about 
half way between the Pequot House and the city. 
The captain had decided to illuminate the ship, in 
honor of the occasion, in grand style, so a liberal 
order for pyrotechnics was sent to Philadelphia, and 
we had on hand on the day in question enough sky- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 215 

rockets, Roman candles and wheels, to blow the ship 
to — say Guinea. 

We made all our arrangements to have the display 
come off at 10.30 p. m., and the programme was 
arranged with as much system and discipline as any 
evolution in seamanship would require. 

At dusk, the men being all stationed and whips 
rove, the order was given, 

" Lay aloft," 

" Trice up," 
and literally in a twinkling the ship was covered 
with lanterns, and presented the appearance of a 
great constellation. 

I took a boat and pulled to one of the ships lying 
near in order to see how she looked. 

The effect was 

BEAUTIFUL IN THE EXTREME. 

We had crossed top-gallant and royal yards for the 
purpose, and the lights at the fore, main and mizzen 
trucks, royal, top-gallant, topsail and lower yardarms, 
in the tops, at end of lower studding-sail, flying jib 
and spanker booms, at each cat-head, in each gang- 
way, on each quarter, and at the peak, formed three 
beautiful arches of lights, with a great one at right 
angles traversing the three, and the ship — from stem 
to stern, from flying jib-boom up, over all the trucks, 
to the spanker boom. 



216 OH A 8CAN-OF-WAJL 

At 10.30 p. m. the signal was given by the firing of 
a nine-inch gun and the men swarmed aloft, each man 
to a lantern; again, a second gun, and the fire-works 
began. 

The royal yard men lighted red lights, the top-gal- 
lant yard men white and the topsail yard men blue, 
while the men at the lower yards burned all three 
at once. 

The same order was observed on the head booms. 
In each gangway an immense wheel whizzed and 
flashed, while from the forecastle was sent up a 
rocket for each State. 

The effect was 

INDESCRIBABLE AND MAGNIFICENT 

in the extreme. Throughout it all, order and disci- 
pline reigned; the pump brakes were shipped, the 
hose led along, buckets of water were filled and dis- 
tributed all over the ship, and the sense of absolute 
security from fire, with the consciousness of perfect 
control should it take place, enchanced the pleasure 
of the scene. The fire-works being soon over, the 
debris was thrown into the convenient sea alongside, 
the pipes sounded the plaintive call for sweepers, and 
the decks being swept clean, the "pipe down M soon 
followed, and by 11.30 p. m. the profound Btillness, 
broken only by the tread of the sentries and the otfi- 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. '2 1 t 

cer of the deck, offered a striking contrast to the 
fiery, exciting scene of an hour before. 

ENTERTAINING FRIENDS. 

On one occasion, having been ordered as executive 
officer of a rather nice-looking steamer, I took the 
first opportunity that presented itself to invite some 
of my relatives to come on board and see the ship, 
and find out what an important individual I really 
was. 

Shortly after the party came on board, I was sum- 
moned to the mast, by the officer of the deck, to hear 
a complaint against one of the crew, so turning my 
friends over to the care of one of the midshipmen, I 
repaired to the mainmast. Recognizing in the cul- 
prit an old offender, and the act a repetition of a 
former offense, and being irritated, also, by being- 
called away from my friends, I was giving him fits, 
and telling him just what I was going to do with 
him, when I felt a hand on my shoulder, and an 
affectionate female voice say: 

"KEEP YOUR TEMPER, FRANKIE. 

Don't lose your temper my boy." 

I felt the dignity of the man who had been execu- 
tive officer of six or seven ships rock and sway; 
the scoundrel at the mast bit his lip to keep from 



218 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

smiling, and feeling that I could not do the subject 
justice, I fled from the sight of man — and woman. 

Frequently after, when working ship, and giving 
some quick, short order, where promptness was abso- 
lutely necessary, I fancied that I could see the smile 
repeated on the faces of the crew and that they were 
muttering, 

" Keep your temper, Frankie." 

THE IRREPRESSIBLE DARKY, 

alluded to in a former letter, used to try my patience 
very much. 

Punishment seemed to roll off from his dusky hide 
like water. I have seen him stand on a capstan for 
hours and joke with some other offender near by, at 
the imminent risk, if detected by the officer of the 
deck, of being sentenced to four hours more. 

Upon being asked after standing three hours on 
the topsail sheet bitts, what he was up there for. 
he replied, with a darkey chuckle, 

"Lookin' out for whales, sir." 

One night he was up for punishment, and was pac- 
ing the lee side of the quarter-deck; as he walked up 
and down, the spirit of mischief impelled him to give 
an extra slap on the deck with his bare foot as he 
turned to go forward; it is to be supposed that lie 
presumed that the slap on the deck would disturb my 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 219 

slumbers, being applied just when he was nearest the 
window of my state-room looking out on deck. 

I opened the blind, and said calmly, 

" If it should happen that you unfortunately make 
that noise once more I shall be compelled to request 
the officer of the deck to station you on the capstan, 
where it won't be noticed." 

For a time the fear of having to stand still until 
midnight on the capstan, instead of the freedom of 
the deck, deterred him, but not long; he couldn't 
stand it, and in less than ten minutes the spat of his 
big foot, just outside my window, was the forerunner 
of his transfer to the capstan, too far away for him 
to annoy me any more. 

TACKING SHIP BY BOOK. 

A midshipman being required to take the deck and 
tack ship, placed himself near the capstan, which 
concealed a copy of " Totten's Naval Text-Book." 

At the order of " mainsail haul," the swing of the 
yards and heavy after sails turned over two pages 
of his book, unbeknownst to him, to the evolution of 
"bringing ship to an anchor," and he astonished all 
hands by promptly calling out the next order on the 
page, which happened to be, 

"Let go the starboard anchor." 



220 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER XXn. 

" Sails were spread to ev'ry wind that blew, 
Raw were the sailors, and the depths were new." 

A BATCH OF YARNS FALLING FROM ALOFT TWO 

MIDSHIPMEN DISCOVEB WHERE THE MI/ZKX-K*!' 

SAIL HALLIARDS ARK BELAYED ONE WAY TO <;il 

"HOME ORDERS" A COLLISION ON THE MISSIS- 
SIPPI HANGING JUDAS ISCARIOT HOW TO MA K I 

A SAILOR WORK THE FRENCHMAN'S FAULT. 

We were one day beating into the Capes of the 
Chesapeake. The ship was under all plain s;iil 
courses, topsails, top-gallant sails, royals, jib, fly inn 
jib and spanker — although it was blowing quite 
fresh. 

As we tacked, first to the northward, then to the 
southward, the breeze freshening as we got in toward 
the shore, the yards came round at the order, " main- 
sail haul," with great force, and it seemed as if the 
heavy tack and sheet blocks would stave in the waist 
boats at their davits. 

LOSING A YARD. 

On the last tack the helm was put down, the tack 
raised, and at 

"Haul taut," "mainsail haul," 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 221 

round came the main and cross-jack yards with a 
tremendous rush, and crash ! went the mizzen top- 
gallant yard, carried away in the slings. We took in 
the mizzen-royal and top-gallant sail and sent down 
the yard for repairs. The yard was broken square in 
two, and there was nothing to do but to make a new 
one out of a spare spar, which was done so soon that 
it was up and across on the following day. I called 
the small boy to me, that was tending the mizzen top- 
gallant and royal braces, but he swore by all that he 
most valued, namely, his ration of duff, that he did 
let go the brace, and that it didn't jam in the block, 
so I had authentic information that the yard broke 
itself, and it is so recorded in the log book, the vera- 
cious history of our celebrated cruise. 

FALLING FROM ALOFT. 

Men and boys frequently fall from aloft, generally, 
however, from their own carelessness; they become 
used to moving about quickly, while aloft, and if 
permitted will run the most foolhardy risks. 

I had to give a peremptory order, inflicting a severe 
penalty on any of the crew who should run out on 
the yards instead of by the foot ropes, which hang 
below the yard, enabling the person to hold on to the 
yard itself. At sea, no man is permitted to work 
outside the ship's rail unless he has a bowline round 



'2VZ ON A MAN-oF-WAi:. 

him, with the end of the rope fast inboard, yet they 
will do it, unless very carefully watched. 

Midshipmen frequently fall from aloft, but being 
warrant officers, they invariably escape serious injury. 
I saw one fall from the main top-gallant yard, strike 
on the topsail yard and bound down into the mam 
top, and he was all right again in two days; another 
fell from the fore top-gallant yard, down about 
twenty-five feet, on to the topsail yard, thence abonf 
forty feet, striking the belly of the foresail, bounded 
up, came down crosswise on a windsail bowline, 
stretched across the forecastle, about ten feet above 
the deck, and came down sitting, somewhat bewil- 
dered, but not hurt; a third, just as he climbed on the 
rim of the foretop, turned his foot on a small rope, 
called the starboard fore top-gallant studding-sail 
boom tricing line, fell striking his chin on the rim of 
the top, breaking several back teeth, lit in the fore- 
rigging on his back, rolled down the incline, bounded 
over the rail, striking his head on one of the guns, 
projecting from a gun-deck port, and into the water, 
a distance entire of seventy-five feet. He was picked 
up, and was able to be about in a few days, nearly as 
good as new. If he had been anything but a ini'l- 
shipman he would have been killed three or four 
times. A friend of mine on shore, who, unfortun- 
ately for him, was Dot one of those who " seldom <li< i 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 223 

and never resign," fell off his chair one day and 
broke his arm so badly that he had to have it taken 
off. 

KILLING A FOEE-YAED MAN. 

A few days after, while at anchor in the Elizabeth 
River, off Norfolk, all hands were called for exercise 
in loosing and furling sail. The top-gallant and royal 
yard men had started first, followed by the topmen, 
and the orders had been given, 

" Aloft, lower yard men," 

"Man the boom tricing lines," 

" Trice up." 

The heavy topmast studding-sail booms, which lie 
on the fore-yard, when triced up, swing aft somewhat, 
as soon as they clear the yard, on account of the lead 
of the tricing line aft. The order being given, 

"Lay out and loose," 
a number of fore-yard men laid out on the yard, and 
a young fellow about nineteen stepped upon the 
patent truss, at the same time looking aft and laugh- 
ing at some one following him. Just then the heavy 
boom swung aft and struck him in the head. He fell 
some fifty feet and struck the man who was tending 
the tricing line, between the shoulders, then struck 
the fife-rail and dropped on deck. The foremast 
man, who was considerably hurt, let go the tricing 
line, and the heavy boom came down again, and 



224 <>\ A \!.\.\-<)|-\VAi;. 

pinned about a dozen boys, who were loosing sail, to 
the yard. It was very ludicrous for a moment, to 
see those little fellows jammed in under the boom 
with their arms and legs sticking out forward and 
aft, looking as if they were spitted like butterflies. 
There were so many of them, however, that no one 
was seriously hurt, and they could not fall because 
they were under the boom. The poor fellow that 
fell, however, was injured internally, and lived only 
twenty-four hours. 

INSTRUCTING MLDSIIIPMEN. 

One day we were making sail, the topsails had 
been hoisted, and every one was flying around in 
answers to the quick, sharp orders of the officer of 
the deck. 

" Let go the port mizzen topsail buntline," 

some one said, so Andy H -, a midshipman, anxious 

to do something, jumped aft and let go the mizzen 
topsail halliards. The yard came down with a run; 
the rope darted up in the air; Andy held on until he 
was about ten feet up, and then dropped on deck on 
his back, having lost most of the skin from hifl hands. 

But old Kirby K , a sleepy, g l-natured fat 

midshipman, who was standing in the port gangway, 
looking on amiably at the bustle around liim, did 
not observe that his feet were in the bight of the 



OX A MAX-OF-WAE. 225 

topsail halliards, which had not been coiled down 
since the hoisting of the sail. When Andy let go 
the rope, however, and his feet shot out from under 
him, he sat down and wondered if the earthquake 
had killed any more beside himself. Both Andy and 
Kirby know now exactly where the mizzen topsail 
halliards are belayed. 

A SALUTE. 

We were one day making preparations for firing a 
salute, when a boat dashed alongside and an English 
officer came on board. He introduced himself as the 
commander of H. B. M. Styx, lying a few hundred 
yards from us on our port beam. 

He laughingly alluded to a quarrel between our 
men and the crew of the English man-of-war Buz- 
zard, and said, that seeing that we were about to 
fire a salute, he thought it safe to call and ask that 
we would take particular care that all the tompions 
were removed from the guns before firing. 

" Sailors will be sailors you know," he said, " and 
as we are lying right under your guns, one or two of 
those heavy tompions, left in, would make a hole in 
us." 

I have met a great number of English naval offi- 
cers, and take great pleasure in saying that they are 
invariably gentlemen. 



2^0 ON A ICAN-OF-WAR. 

a. ''middy's" RUSE. 

An order came out to the commodore of the East 
India squadron to send all the forty date of midship- 
men home for examination. 

The word was passed for all the young gentlemen 
who had entered the service in 1840 to report on the 
quarter-deck. When the old commodore came out, 
and looked at the overjoyed youngsters, who were 
going home, he asked each one gruffly: 

" Are you forty date, sir ? " 

" Are you sir ? " 

"You, sir?" 
until he came to a midshipman who had entered two 
years later, and who was standing quite near the rest, 
who hesitatingly answered, 

" I sir, I am forty-two, sir." 

When the young gentleman reached the States, the 
Department showed some surprise that the commo- 
dore should have sent home one of the i'orty-two 
date, who had only been on the station a year. 

DUCKING A RECUSANT. 

A number of years ago, on board one of our Urge 

frigates, one of the men refused to do duty, " defy- 
ing the whole caboodle of Ym to make him do any- 
thing." So the first lieutenant sent for one of the 
stout coal bags, and putting a couple of round shot 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 227 

in the bottom to give weight to the discipline, he had 
the unruly member placed in it, with his hands tied 
behind him, the bag being tightly laced around his 
throat, with his head out. Amid sarcastic remarks 
by the rebel, a line was bent on to the becket or handle, 
run through a block on the fore yard-arm, thence 
through a block in the slings of the yard, and bein^ 
snatched was led along the deck. At the order, fifty 
men ran away with the line, and our hero was sud- 
denly swung oscillating and vibrating to the fore 
yard-arm. As soon as he got his breath he railed at 
all hands, and abused everybody until he was tired. 
The mastman, watching his opportunity, suddenly 
threw off the turn, and down a clean drop of sixty 
feet, went the coal bag into the water. Away went 
the men again with a run (they enjoyed it as much as 
any one, and even more than the man in the bag), and 
dripping and puffing, up went the bag man to the 
yard-arm. 

Still unsubdued, he swore and talked until he saw 
that no one paid any attention to him, and finally 
under the influence of the wetting and the hot sun, 
he got asleep. Off went the turn again, and down 
went the bag again, carried well under water by the 
friendly round shot, inside, and then up went the 
dripping victim to his station. When he got fairly 
up, and the horrible vibrations had somewhat ceased, 



228 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

he looked appealingly to the officer of the deck ami 
said: 

" May 1 be let down, Bir ? " 

" Certainly," was the reply. 

Up went a topman and bending a guy to the guy in 
the bag, he was tenderly landed on deck, ami Bel at 
liberty, turning out afterwards one of the best men 
in the ship. 

.You must remember, my boy, that these occurred 
in the palmy days, and if an executive officer tried 
any such thing now, the erudite and better posted 
sailor would prefer charges againsl him as long as 
your arm, and which forwarded to the Navy Depart- 
ment might deprive the arm of the service of a valu- 
able auxiliary. 

THE FRENCHMAN'S FAULT. 

While one of our frigates lay at Malta, in the Medi- 
terranean, some of the crew, on liberty, got into a ter- 
rible fight with the crew of a French man-of-war. 

The executive officer was holding an investigation 
at the mast, the following day, when the captain of 
the maintop came up, and offered the following 
explanation: 

"You see, sir, it was all the Frenchman's fault, sir. 
Me, and the coxswain of the u r i;r, and Jimmy 1. 
and the captain of the foretop, sir, was a talking 



ON A MAN-OF-WAB. 229 

down the street, just as quiet as lambs, sir, when 
along came some Frenchman from the jE'twoil. I 
wanted to be civil, so I says to 'em, 

" ' Will you come in and take a drink ? says L' 

" ' Kay ? ' says he. 

"'Kay?' says Jimmy Leggs, ' what kind of an 
answer is that to give a gentleman ? ' 
and he up and hit him; and that's the way the row 
began, sir. You see, sir, it were all the Frenchman's 
fault, sir." 



230 ON A MAN-OF-WAU. 



LETTER XXTIL 

" Come, seize your glasses, fellows, 

And sit down in a ring; 
For 'tis about this Naval School 

That I'm about to sing. 
You've oft heard tell of middies? 

God bless the young heroes ! 
And if half of them do not 'bil.^e, 

They'll be a terror to their foos. 

U. 8. NAVAL ACADEMY HOW TO OBTAIN AN APPOINT- 
MENT QUALIFICATIONS FOR ADMISSION — PAY AND 

EXPENSES DESCRIPTION OF THE ACADEMY THE 

DAILY ROUTINE. 

For the benefit of the aspirants for future naval 
honors, I give a brief synopsis of the only method of 
entering the navy of the United States as an officer. 
All regular line officers of the navy must be gradu- 
ates of the United States Naval Academy, now situ- 
ated at Annapolis, Maryland. 

NOMINATION. 

The number of cadet-midshipmen allowed at th<* 
Academy is one for every member and delegate of 
the House of Representatives; one for the District 
of Columbia, and ten appointed annually at large. 

The nomination of candidates for admission from 
the District of Columbia and at large is made by the 
President. The nomination of a candidate from any 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 231 

Congressional district or territory is made on the 
recommendation of the member or delegate from 
actual residents of his district or territory. 

Each year, as soon after the oth of March as pos- 
sible, members and delegates will be notified in writ- 
ing of vacancies that may exist in their districts. If 
such members or delegates neglect to recommend 
candidates by the first of July in that year, the 
Secretary of the Navy is required by law to fill the 
vacancies existing in districts actually represented in 
Congress. They will be filled by appointments from 
the districts in which the vacancies exist. 

The nomination of candidates is made annually 
between the 5th of March and the 1st of July. 
Candidates who are nominated in time to enable them 
to reach the academy on the 21st of June will receive 
permission to present themselves at that time to the 
Superintendent of the Naval Academy for examina- 
tion as to their qualifications for admission. Those 
who are nominated prior to July 1st, but not in time 
to attend the June examination, will be examined on 
the 12th of September following; and should any 
candidate fail to report, or be found physically or 
mentally disqualified for admission in June, the mem- 
ber or delegate from whose district he was nominated 
will be notified to recommend another candidate, who 
shall be examined on the 12th of September follow- 



'I'-Vl OK A MAN-OF-WAR. 

ing. When any of the dates assigned for examina- 
tions fall on Sunday, the examination will take place 
on the following Monday. 

A sound body and healthy constitution, good men- 
tal abilities, a natural aptitude for study and habits 
of application, persistent effort, an obedient and 
orderly disposition, and correct moral principles and 
deportment, are so necessary to success in pursuing 
the course at the academy, that persons conscious of 
deficiency in these respects are earnestly recommended 
not to subject themselves or their friends to the 
mortification and disappointment consequent upon 
failure, by accepting nominations and attempting to 
enter a service for which they are not fitted. 

EXAMINATION. 

Each candidate for appointment as cadet-midship- 
man must present to the Academic Board satisfactory 
testimonials of good moral character, and must certify 
on honor to his precise age, which must be over four- 
teen and less than eighteen years at the time of the 
examination. No candidate will be examined whose 
age does not fall within the prescribed limits. 

Candidates must be physically sound, well forme. 1. 
and of robust constitution; they \\ ill he required to 
pass a satisfactory examination before a medical 
board composed of one of the medical officers of the 



OX A MAN-OF-WAR. 2iOd 

Naval Academy and two other medical officers to 
be designated by the Secretary of the Navy. 

ADMISSION. 

Candidates who pass the physical and mental 
examinations will receive appointments as cadet-mid- 
shipmen and become inmates of the academy. Each 
cadet will be required to sign articles by which he 
binds himself to serve in the United States navy 
eight years (including his time of probation at the 
Naval Academy), unless sooner discharged. The 
pay of a cadet-midshipman is $500 a year, com- 
mencing at the date of his admission. 

Each cadet-midshipman must, on admission, deposit 
with the paymaster the sum of $50, for which he will 
be credited on the books of that officer, to be 
expended, by direction of the superintendent, in the 
purchase of text-books and other authorized articles. 

All the deposits for clothing, and the entrance- 
deposit of $50 must be made before a candidate can 
be received into the academy. 

SUMMARY OF EXPENSES. 

Deposit for clothing, $10970 

Deposit for books, etc., 50 00 

Total deposit required, $210 To 



234 ON A ICAN-OF-WAB. 

The value of clothing brought from home is to he 
deducted from this amount. 

Each cadet-midshipmen, one month after admission, 
will be credited with the amount of his actual 
expenses in traveling from his home to the academy. 

A cadet-midshipman, who voluntarily resign- his 
appointment within a year of the time of his admis- 
sion to the academy, will be required to refund the 
amount paid him for traveling expenses. 

THE ACADEMY 

is delightfully situated, with the City of Annapolis 
on two sides and the Severn River and Chesapeake 
Bay on the other two. 

The grounds are inclosed or separated from the 
city by a high brick wall with two gates, and mid- 
shipmen cannot pass beyond the limits of the acad- 
emy except by written permission. 

The midshipmen live in quarters, the different 
classes being as much as practicable together. 

The Superintendent of the Aacademy is a naval 
officer of high rank, and the supervision and instruc- 
tion of the cadets is, as much as practicable, directly 
by naval officers. 

There is an academic examination in February, the 
academic year beginning October 1, and the regular 
, annual examination in June of each year for each 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 235 

class, at which a board of visitors, appointed by the 
President of the United States, is present. 

A graduate of the Naval Academy will have had 
thorough instruction in mathematics as high as trigo- 
nometry, analytical geometry and conic sections; in 
seamanship, naval construction, naval tactics, gun- 
nery, infantry tactics, field artillery and mortar prac- 
tice, fencing, steam engineering, astronomy, naviga- 
tion and surveying, physics and chemistry, mechanics, 
law, history, drawing, French and Spanish; and he 
will not get through the various examinations in 
these branches unless he is thoroughly posted in each. 
I am happy to say that a Michigan representative 
took a single number last year, graduating No. 5 in a 
class of 45. 

The academy grounds are very delightfully laid 
out with walks and fountains, boat-houses, with num- 
erous boats to be used under reasonable restrictions, 
gymnasium, fencing and dancing hall, and a fine 
band; and is altogether a very enjoyable place to ob- 
tain a first-class education. 

THE DAILY ROUTINE 

is as follows: 
Reveille, 6 a. m. 
Roll-call and chapel, 6.45 a. m. 
Breakfast, V a. u. 



236 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Sick call, 7.30 a. m. 

Bugle call to studies, 7.56 a. h. 

Bugle call for first recitation, 8.26 a. k. 

Bugle call for second recitation, 9.20 a. m. 

Bugle call for third recitation, 10.41 a. m. 

Bugle call for fourth recitation, 11.41 a. m. 

Drum dinner call, 12.55 p. m. 

Bugle call for first afternoon recitation, 1.58 p. m. 

Bugle call for second afternoon recitation, 2.50 !\ \i. 

Bugle call to drill, 4.05 p. M. 

Bugle recall for drill, 5.15 p. m. 

Drum evening roll-call and parade, then supper, 
6.:30 p. m. 

Drum call for gymnastic exercises, 15 minutes 
after supper. 

Bugle call to evening studies, 7.30 p. if. 

Gun fire and tattoo, 9.30 p. m. 

Taps, 10 p. m. 

On Sundays the programme is somewhat different, 
there being no recitations or drills. On Saturday 
there is a drill in the forenoon at great guns, naval 
tactics, or howitzer, or something of that kind, the 
remainder of the day and evening being for recrea- 
tion. 

The junior class entering in September nr ,H ' v to 
in June, after the examination, for a practice cruise 
until October I. The following June they u<> on a 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 23'i 

leave of absence for the same time; going to sea for 
the second time in the June following, and graduating 
a year from that time, in June, as midshipmen, after 
a course of four years. 

I see, however, by the last reports, that the Super- 
intendent of the Naval Academy recommends that 
for the present a fewer number of midshijmien and 
engineers be graduated from the academy, as with 
our few ships and small navy the supply is greater 
than the demand. Consequently the prospect is that 
an officer will attain middle life before reaching even 
a medium rank in the service. 



238 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 



LETTER XXIV. 

REMINISCENCES OF THE OLD NAVAL ACADEMY — MEET- 
ING A CLASSMATE BEINGS BACK " THE BOYS" TO 

MEMORY THE PRANKS OF MISCHIEVOUS MIDSH I P- 

MEN REPEATED FOR THE BENEFIT OF THEIR CHIL- 
DREN A PLEASANT MEMORY OF CUSHING OF THE 

ALBEMARLE MUSICAL CULTURE OF THE SECOND 

CLASS PET NAMES FOR PRETTY BOYS ORIGINAL 

EXERCISES WITH A LIGHT BATTERY — BRICKS AS 
AMMUNITION. 

I met an old classmate the other day, and we 
talked about 

THE OLD NAVAL ACADEMY 

all the evening. There were lots of names that I 
had almost forgotten, but the train of conversation 
brought them all up, even to their initials. 

You remember Tom Harrison; he was from Vir- 
ginia, and went south during the war. You remem- 
ber how he threw a brick at the watchman's lantern 
and smashed it, and was so sound asleep when Johnn) 

M came round to inspect that he couldn't be 

waked up, and how poor old W n up stairs, who 

was safe in bed, as lie thought, after being ''out or 
French," was made to walk a seam, and failing 



ON A MAN-OF-WAK. 239 

ignominiously, was suspended for being tight ? " At- 
tention to orders. Acting Midshipman Charles H. 
W n is hereby placed under suspension for viola- 
tion of article 7 of the United States Naval Academy 
regulations — intoxication. He will, therefore, while 
thus under suspension, govern himself in strict 
accordance with article 39, chapter 11 of the regula- 
tions established by the Navy Department. L. M. 
Goldsborough, Superintendent." 

OLD GRISWOLD. 

You remember Griswold, George H. ; he was from 
Detroit; he roomed with Gregory, of New York. 
Gregory shaved Griswold's eyebrows off one evening 
while he was asleep, and he did look like thunder. 
Gregory used to play the organ in the chapel, and 
would " wander by the brookside " in the voluntary 
until some professor's attention was called to it, 
when he would tone down in a hymn. 

Griswold afterwards roomed with Johnny Nor- 
throp, from South Carolina; he took John's pil- 
low-case off one evening to get shell oysters in, and 
the ever-patient John got mad and licked him for it. 

Griswold and Gregory came out of dinner one day 
and went into Sanderson's room, in No. 3 building 
(Sanderson was a tall, lanky fellow from Pennsyl- 
vania), and tilted the table up against the door and 



Ii4r* > ON A MAN-'iF-WAK. 

piled mattress, wash-bowl and pitcher, looking-glass 
and bottle of ink on top of everything, so when old 
Sanderson burst into his room it would all come 
down, and Sanderson was spotted next day for " ink 
on floor," and got six demerits. 

You know 200 demerits, in one year, would dismiss 
you. You remember Gregory got 580 before the 
February examination. The daily report of conduct 
at evening parade used to read: Gregory, visiting 
in study hours, 10; the same, the same, 10; the same, 
untidy room, bed not made at morning inspection, 6; 
the same, inattentive at drill, 4; the same, absent 
from 8 a. m. recitation, 6; the same, skylarking dur- 
ing study hours, etc.; Robinson, C. H., skulking 
from drill. 

THERE WAS DICK PRENTISS, POOR FELLOW, 

he was killed at Mobile. Dick taught us how to 
blow the gas out in the rest of the building, by put- 
ting your handkerchief over the burner and blowing 
in the pipe until you were black in the face; and how 
to rig tin water pails over the door so as to duck the 
officer in charge when he came round and opened tin- 
door. 

Dick and another fellow were down on the wharf 
one day, and the other fellow said he would jump 
in if Dick would, so Dick jumped in over his head. 
and then the other fellow wouldn't jump. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 241 

You remember Gushing, of the Albemarle, and I 
had a fight behind the battery one evening, and 
Gushing — no — I, got thrashed ? 

BOOTS. 

Old John Taylor Wood came round inspecting one 
day, and Shute (you remember Francis Asbury Shute, 
of Mulliky Hill, New Jersey) had put a pair of boots 
artistically under his bed, and pulled the spread 
down so you could just see them. So old John said, 
gruffly, 

" Visiting in study hours, eh ? Come out." 
And when he didn't come out, he pulled at the 
boots, which readily came out, colored crimson and 
went out. The next day you could see artistic boots 
in nearly every room in No. 1 building, and an order 
came out, " that the bed spread should be tucked in 
under the mattress, so a clear view of the floor could 
be had." 

THE SECOND CLASS GOT A HAND-ORGAN, 

and used to serenade everybody in the yard, until one 
day a fellow was playing during study hours, in a 
window on the third floor of No. 4 building, when a 
watchman came to the room and said, 

" That the officer in charge had sent down for that 
organ." 

" This organ ? " said the midshipman, giving it a 

16 



242 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

careless nudge with his elbow, "why certainly," 
and the watchman gathered up the pieces of pipe on 
the pavement thirty feet below, or what was left of 
them. The superintendent of the building got 
spotted, however, for neglect of duty in permitting 
an organ to be played during study hours. 

YOU REMEMBER " KATY." 

The midshipmen called him Katy because he had 
such red cheeks and was so pretty. Tom Mills used 
to say, 

" Katy, you dear old girl, come here and give me a 
kiss and stop beating the drum." 

Katy was knock-kneed a little, which, in sailor par- 
lance, was called beating the drum. There was 
"Fanny" Spencer — he's dead now, poor fellow; 
"Martha " Dickens, " Sophy " Swan, " Polly " White, 
" Nancy " Blue, all pretty boys. They have grown 
up into bearded officers with little trace of their 
former red cheeks. 

Old C. S. Hunt; he got very much excited on reli- 
gion, Darwinism, and resigned. He said he had saved 
up enough money when he " went on leave," to pay his 

fare home and back and give " Yank R ginger 

snaps all the way." Yank is a commander now, and 
a very good one, I hear. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 213 

" DUNKEE " A. 

You remember the day we were all down to recita- 
tion in electricity with Hopkins, and we all formed a 
line round a Leyden jar, and Dunk touched the knob 
and seemed to be fearfully overcome with the shock, 
kicked over the jar and rolled over and over on the 
floor, until old Hopkins laughed himself hoarse, say- 
ing, that he never saw it affect any one so before. 

Dunk was attached to the academy afterward, at 
Newport, as a lieutenant, and on his first day's duty 
at the Atlantic House, the watchman came in and 
reported that the lower sash of room No. 26 was 
raised. Dunk said at once: 

" Will you please tell me what in thunder I care 
whether the lower sash is raised or not ? " 

So I had to explain that the lower lights of glass 
are painted and are not to be raised during study 
hours, so the attention of the midshipman shall not 
be taken from his studies. 

"ka-nipe." 
Do you remember old Ka-nipe ? He used to cut 
his tobacco in so many pieces and put himself on an 
allowance of so many chews a day, and when he was 
on the pledge not to use tobacco in the academy 
grounds, he went out on Long Wharf and stuck a 
plank out over the Severn River and sat on the end 



244: ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

of it, so as to he outside the academy limits, and 
chewed and spit into the river. 

ECCENTRIC ARTILLERY DRILL. 

Do you remember the evening we took the park 
of light artillery all to pieces, and dismounted the 
guns, and run the wheels in all directions, and threw 
the linch pins into the river? Old Jas. I. Waddell 
was officer in charge. (Jas. I. commanded the rebel 
Shenandoah afterward during the war.) Wasn't In- 
mad ? McGonegal said that it was lucky for him 
that he wasn't in charge, or he would have been 
detached from the academy, sure. 

There was Nick Stanton and Doolittle who roomed 
together. Nick jumped out of the second story of 
No. 3 building one evening, because he would not be 
dared, and it never hurt him a bit. 

PRESENCE OF MIND. 

There were two fellows in No. 3 building " went 
on French " out in town one night, and got full of 
rum. Well, one of them got caught, and the doctor 
came down and gave him some ammonia that sobered 
him instantly, and the other fellow said that was a 
good thing to have, and stole the bottle. Be got 
caught afterwards, putting bricks in the guns at 
light artillery drill, just to see 'em ^kip across tin- 
bay to the detriment of passing schooners. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 245 

A RETORT. 

One year the Wabash came there with Franklin 
Pierce on board, and a British man-of-war, the Cura- 
ooa, to take Lord Napier home; a little son of Lord 
Napier said to a young midshipman in the boat, 
going off to the ship, 

" I suppose those stripes on your flag are the ones 
you put on the backs of your slaves, ain't they ? " 

" Yes," said the middy, " and those are the stars 
we made you see at Bunker Hill." 

There was Jacobs, W. C. ; he resigned when a sec- 
ond class man, and now is a doctor out in Ohio with 
the income of a commodore. 

You remember old DeBree, first lieutenant of the 
practice ship Plymouth? 

One day the midshipmen were exercising on the 
fore yard, shrieking and making an awful noise; poor 
old Simon couldn't hear at all, but he thought, by the 
looks, that they were raising thunder, so he turned to 
me and said nervously, 

"Ain't they talking some up there ? " 

" Yes, sir, particularly in the slings," 
so he hailed them to make less noise in the slings. 

You remember Woodhull Smith Schenck ? Well, 
old Schenck went out to Japan after he resigned, and 
is now a rich man. 

Jimmy Tayloe was killed on board the rebel ram 



246 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

Merrimao. Bull Carnes commanded a rebel howitzer 
battery in Tennessee. 

Averett and Dornin were on board the privateer 
Florida. Armstrong was on the Alabama. 

Savez Read was the pirate of the Taconey that 
cut the Caleb Cushing out of Portland, and after- 
ward ran the C. H. Webb down the Mississippi 
Read was leader of the second section in French, 
and when marching to recitation used to look back 
and say, 

" Catch pied, now you fellows," 
for catch step, and as he always said, 

" Savez ? " 
for "do you understand?" they always called him 
Savez Read. 

You remember how ten fellows were dismissed for 
tarring and feathering Foote, of my class, and the 
midshipman had a court of inquiry to find out 
exactly who did it ? 

Tom Fister, of Berks County, Penn; he seceded 
during the war, had been bragging of how much he 
had done, until he found that they were to be pun- 
ished for it when he became as innocent as a dove. 

Savez Read was president of the court, and he 
cross-examined Tom somewhat as follows: 

"You didn't hang out of your window for two 

hours with a d d big rope with a running aoose 

in it to catch Foote when he came b\ P" 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 247 

" No, sir." 

" You didn't run round the rear of building No. 3 
with a pail of tar crying, ' Come on fellows, we've 
got him,' did you ? " 

"No, sir, I was only running down to the gas 
house to see what they was going to do with him." 

The evidence being too strong, Tom was convicted 
and all ten were dismissed. They went up to Wash- 
ington, however, and after being the lions for a week, 
were re-instated in their own class. 

You know Jug M committed suicide out in 

China. Zimmerman was blown up in the Westfield 
off Galveston. 

Charley Swasey was killed on board the Scioto, 
and there is only half a dozen left out of a class that 
had altogether 116 in it. Well, twenty-two years 
make great changes, and, my boy, we are getting 
along in years though we don't realize it. 

Old Don Roget, he was professor of Spanish; 
when we came to the sentence in Ollendorf, 

" Have I the horse that you have ? " 
each class, every year, used to insist on an explana- 
tion, resulting somewhat as follows: 

" One ting cannot be in two places at the same 
time, except it be a bird that can ily very quick; two 
tings cannot be in the same place at the same time, 
unless there be room for both of dose tings; two per- 



248 ON A MAN-OK-W AK. 

sons cannot sit in the same chair, at the same time, 
unless de chair be wide enough for both of dose per- 
sons; true, one might sit in de Oder's lap, but <lat is 
not it," 

"You will now proceed after de explanation." 

He hated musk, and the midshipmen used to u«> Dp 
with high standing collars, all scented with musk, 
and lie would have to dismiss the class and air the 
room. 

One day "Savez" Read carried up a Lubin bottle 
filled with sulphuretted hydrogen, and while vainly 
trying to get the glass stopper out, he dropped it <>n 
the floor and it rolled to the middle of the room; 
of course everybody laughed. Don said, 

"Mr. Read, I will report you for making a laugh." 

" I didn't make a laugh." 

" You dropped dat bottle." 

" Yes, but I didn't go to do it." 

" Did you drop dat bottle to make a laugh or did 
you not ?" 

"I did not." 

"Very well, I will report somebody. Mr. Hoag 
I'll report you because you laughed first, and Mr. 
Schley, I'll report you because you laughed loudest; I 
am never tired of making reports," 
and he did. Pinkey Hoag burned even pinker with 
restrained laughter, but got six demerits just the 



ON A MAN-OF-WAE. 249 

same. He told Ned Furber that those French poo- 
dles would be Creoles if born in the United States. 

I never shall forget Mug Foster; they called him 
Mug because he always had a sore lip. He was at 
the academy eighteen months, and he always had a 
boil on his upper lip that swelled his face up and 
made him unhappy. He roomed with Adj. Wharton 
when a fourth class man. Wharton got his name 
from Foster's telling how he used to make him 
march up and down the room while he gave the 
orders as he would if he were adjutant, 

" Fust captains to the front and centah : — mawch," 

" Front," 

" Repawt," 

" Posts," 

" Ma wen." 

The best of the joke was, that Wharton was both 
adjutant and subadjutant of first and second class, 
being a very smart fellow, and would have been a 
credit to the service if he had not chosen to go 
south with his state. Sardine Graham, S., was a 
smart fellow too, and stood two in the class. Old 
Sardine is a clerk of court in Alabama, I think, 
with seven children all the same size. 

Do you remember how old John W used to 

sneak round in rubbers to catch us visiting or smok- 
ing ? and how old Billy M skipped upstairs like 



250 ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 

any midshipman, and then came down, scooping 'em 
all very much, like any officer in charge ? 

They used to say that John Taylor Wood would 
come into a building and tap on the steam pipes, to 
indicate an officer coming, and then wait for a few 
minutes so as to give them all a chance to be ready 
for inspection. I think that we were better behaved 
for being treated decently, don't you ? 

Those bugle calls to recitation and study hour-, I 
can whistle them as readily as I could twenty years 
ago. You remember how some of our class spiked 
the morning gun so that they couldn't fire it for 
reveille. 

Count Segur was professor of fencing and draw- 
ing while we were fourth class, 

" Get on, young gentlemen, get on." 

I used to get him talking and he would tell stories 
and draw almost all of my picture. What btories he 
used to tell, and how he use. I t«» exaggerate them: 

" Young gentlemen, one day I was riding on a 
mule on the Isthmus of Panama, and had stood up 
in order to make a sketch; I suddenly caught a view 
of both oceans, a thing never before Been, I was 
sketching rapidly when my mule started, and I was 
suspended by my eyelids over a frightful precipice: 
I never lost my presence of mind, however, and com* 
pleted my sketch before I came down. Get on." 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 251 

I remember when I was in the fourth class, that 
Lockwood, who was professor of infantry tactics, 
had a good deal of trouble in teaching us the first 
rudiments of the drill. He knew only one of us by 
name, and when he saw a fellow inattentive he would 
promptly call out, 

" Ha-a re-e-port Mr. Spencer-a-a-inattentive on 
drill." 

"My name isn't Spencer, sir." 

" Oh, a-ha where is Mr. Spencer," 
and Spencer was looked up and spotted just the same. 

Poor old Bab, he's out west book-keeping, for some 
one in a tobacco house, he having sympathized on the 
wrong side in the " late unpleasantness." 

Lockwood was professor of natural philosophy 
when I was in the first class. I remember, one day, he 
had just finished an experiment for the first section, 
when the second section came in (of course, I was in 
the second section, there being but two in the class), 
and I quietly took the wine-glass, filled with spirits 
of wine and covered with a piece of bladder, out of 
the bowl of water, pricked it and let it squirt under 
the table without Lockwood seeing me. When it 
came time to exhibit the experiment the professor 
took the wine-glass from the water, and commenced, 

"You-a-a-see that this wine-glass is filled with 
spirits of wine, covered with bladder, and has been 



252 ON A MAN-uF-WAB. 

immersed in water; the water having less attraction 
for the bladder than the spirits of wine, it will force 
itself into the glass and distend the bladder, making 
the surface convex; if now I prick the bladder, a jet 
will ensue." 

Well, he pricked the bladder, and there was do 
jet, of course. Turning, he fixed his eye on me and 
said hesitatingly and angrily, 

"Di-i-d yo-o-ou prick tha-a-at?" 

" Yes, sir." 

" Well, I wish that you wouldn't fool with these 
experiments any more. Gentlemen the section is 
dismissed." 

And now that I have got back to my alma m>ii> r, 
the dear old academy from w r hich I started out bo lull 
of life and hope, seventeen years ago, having passed 
through many varied and exciting scenes, yet accom- 
plishing so little of what I had hoped, it seems fitting 
that I should close these sketches here. To those 
who have followed me through them all, I thank you 
heartily; pleased, if I have been able to contribute 
to your amusement, if you are a sailor, or if I have 
added to your store of information as regards a 
" Man-of-War," if a landsman. 

To those who would be critical, I ask their indul- 
gence, with the plea that I never wrote a book before, 
and I will never. n> ver <1<> ii again. 



ON A MAN-OF-WAR. 253- 

Since 1870, when I retired from active service, the 
fashion of naval things has changed as materially as 
have others. A Phonograph, on the bridge, will 
recite the orders for tacking and working ship with- 
out making a mistake, and never turn over two leaves 
at once; Torpedoes, and improved Gatling guns, 
Rams and sub-marine engines of destruction, have 
taken the place of the weapons with Avhich I am 
familiar; and should adverse fate, and the order of 
the President, send me once more to sea, I should not 
only have to learn much that is new, but unlearn 
many of the old-fashioned notions I have just- 
imposed upon a confiding public — as the latest out. 



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